The Forces of Nature
by Dementra
Summary: WIP. 6th. AU. Element magic has resurfaced amongst the Wizarding World, giving both sides a new weapon to use. But little do they know that higher forces are at work here, and the fate of the world is hanging on the line.
1. The Eclipse

_**The Forces of Nature**_

**Hi! Thanks for wanting to read this fanfic. I hope you like this story.**

**After consulting with ****NkyOT, I have decided to rewrite this again, because Harry was quickly becoming a Mary Sue and there were other big flaws. I hope you'll like this version better. Sorry for keeping you waiting and rewriting this again.**

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**Chapter 1 The Eclipse**

The full moon hung in the starless sky, washing the land with its soft pale light. It was a land that was far cry from its usual state. The forest was utterly silent. No creature could be seen or heard. Even the breeze that lasted throughout the day had stilled. It had been this way since dusk began.

Something big was about to happen. Every creature could feel it in the depths of their soul.

Nevertheless, undeterred by these ominous signs, six cloaked figures entered the woodland from different paths and strolled towards the heart of the forest. The rustling of leaves that marked their passing was the only sound that filled the area. Slowly, but surely, they reached their destination where a tree stump, one so large that it would have taken all of them with linked hands to surround it, awaited them. Its cut was so smooth that it could only have been made by a single slice, not by a series of cuts. As one, the cloaked figures lifted up their arms to either side of them — their right hand facing upwards and their left hand facing downwards. The hands hovered neared their neighbours' but not yet touching.

And they waited.

Minutes later, the signal they were anticipating for appeared — a shadow came into sight at the edge of the moon, slowly enveloping it.

The lunar eclipse had started.

And so had their chanting.

The air around them thickened like syrup; and they each started to glow a different colour — crimson, purple, azure, periwinkle, yellow, chrome, green, and white. As they chanted, they grew bright and brighter, penetrating the darkness. When the shadow covered the moon, the six lights shot to the sky as a giant pillar and then enveloped the entire area.

Elsewhere, in another time, in another place, six woke up from their slumber, panting hard, covered with sweat. They knew not what they had just witnessed within their dream, but they instinctively knew that a big change was about to occur in their lives — whether it was for better or worse, they could not escape and nothing would be the same again.

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**What do you think of my**** first ****chapter? Please Read and Review. I would love to know how good and how bad my fics are. If you want to flame me, at least make it constructive criticism.**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize f****ro****m the Harry Potter Series aren't mines, they are J.K. Rowling's. Anything else is mine. **Please ask for permission and getting it before taking my things.

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXX**_

_May fantasy guide your writing through it all - Dementra_


	2. The Letters

_**The Forces of Nature**_

**Hi! Thanks for wanting to read this fanfic. I hope you like this story.**

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**Chapter 2 The Letters**

He shot up from his bed, panting harshly, his messy black hair stuck to his sweaty face. Hands fumbling, he reached for the pair of glasses by the floor and put them on. "Oh, not again..." Groaning, he pushed his bangs back, revealing a lightning blot-shaped scar. He had been having the same dream, a dream about people chanting and glowing under the lunar eclipse, for the past few days. After dealing with visions, visions that eventually lead to his godfather's death, for the past year, he really had no wish to deal with anymore strange repetitive dreams.

Rapid tapping sounds brought him out of his stupor and he looked up. There, perched on the windowsill, were three owls, with letters tied to their legs. Swiftly, he got out of bed (or rather his ragged mattress), made his way across the room, and opened the window to let them in.

After giving the owls some food and telling them to wait for a bit, he untied the letters and sat down onto his mattress. All of them were addressed to a Harry Potter, but only two of the handwritings were familiar to him — one scrawled, one in neat block letters. The other two were written in sophisticated cursive.

He set three aside and opened with one with the messy font.

_Sorry about Sirius mate. I know he's a good bloke and all. Anyways, I've gotten 8 OWLs. Mum said that's more than Fred and Goerge's __together__! Bloody brilliant, aren't I? How did you do? Hermione's gotten 15 by the way. And she's been complaining about having not enough. Insane, right?_

Harry smiled. Hermione will always be Hermione.

_Oh yeah, one more thing. Have you gotten any visions lately? If you had, you'd better tell Dumbledore. Hermione's parents were attacked and killed by some Death Eaters yesterday. She's here at the Burrow right now. Dumbledore thinks that you-know-who could be targeting us to lure you out again. Crazy, right? He's thinking of moving us to the Grimold Place cuz it's under the fidelus charm._

Harry glared heatedly at the piece of parchment as if he could burn those words with sheer will alone. _'Voldemort'_, he snarled, cursing him venomously in his mind. It was not until a few minutes later that he cooled down and continued to read the rest of Ron's letter.

_Sorry, I can't write too much, because Dumbledore said that we aren't allowed to for our safety. You'd never know if you-know-who's checking our mails. See you in a few weeks._

_Ron_

He sighed. As much as he liked hearing form Ron, he hated it. Reluctantly secluded from the rest of the Wizarding World during the summer holidays, he had always felt they were drifting away from him (a feeling which is pushed aside upon the arrival of the school year), especially this summer where every letter seemed to be governed by the current Headmaster of Hogwarts. Putting the letter down, the teen picked up and opened the letter with Hogwarts' seal stamped on it.

_ORDINARY WIZARDING LEVEL RESULTS_

_**Passing Grades:  
**__Outstanding Plus (O+) worth 3 OWLs  
Outstanding (O) worth 2 OWLs  
Exceeded Expectations (E) worth 1 OWL  
Acceptable (A) worth 1 OWL_

_**Failing Grades:  
**__Poor (P)  
Dreadful (D)  
Troll (T)  
_

_HARRY JAMES POTTER HAS ACHIEVED_

_Ancient Runes: N/A  
Arithmetic: N/A  
Astronomy: A  
Care of Magical Creatures: O  
Charms: O  
Defense Against the Dark Arts: O+  
Divination: P  
Herbology: E  
History of Magic: D  
Muggle Studies: N/A  
Potions: E  
Transfiguration: E  
_

_OWLs achieved: 11 OWLs_

_Congratulations on the OWLs you have received. Please select your NEWT courses for the following year. A list of equipments needed for each course has been included with this letter. We await your owl by no later than July 31._

_Minerva McGonagall  
Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

— — — — —

_Please select the course(s) of interest (a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 6 courses):_

_Advanced Ancient Runes (An E in Ancient Runes and Arithmetic is required)  
Advanced Arithmetic (An E is required)  
Advanced Astronomy (An E is required)  
Advanced Care of Magical Creatures (An E is required)  
Advanced Charms (An E is required)  
Advanced Defence Against the Dark Arts (An A is required)  
Advanced Divination (An A is required)  
Advanced Herbology (An E is required)  
Advanced History of Magic (An A is required)  
Advanced Muggle Studies (An A is required)  
Advanced Potions (An O is required)  
Advanced Transfiguration (An E is required)  
Healing (An E in Charms and Transfiguration is required)_

_An Element Magic course is also available. However, only those with the potential to wield element magic are allowed to partake in this course. A test section will be held at the beginning of the school year to see who meets the requirements. In addition, this course does not count within the maximum of six courses; therefore, you may still choose six of the above courses even if you have the potential to wield element magic._

_Minerva McGonagall  
Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

Which ones should he pick? He was not qualified to take Advanced Ancient Runes, Advanced Arithmetic, Advanced Astronomy Advanced Divination, Advanced History of Magic, Advanced Muggle Studies, or Advanced Potions. Come to think of it, he really should have taken Hermione's example and take Ancient Runes or Arithmetic instead of Divination. It would have been more practical and valuable.

He is definitely taking Advanced DADA, Advanced Charms and Advanced Transfiguration. All of them are useful and fun. And speaking of being useful, Healing would be a good course to take, especially since he tended to get into some sort of trouble each year. He doubted that the following year would be any different. Herbology can be useful. Herbs can be very useful for healing, and he had always enjoyed gardening, one of his preferred chores at the Dursleys. And it wouldn't do to abandon Hagrid, who is likely to be the professor of Advanced COMC. But he did not really want a full timetable, and he could always learn about the magical creatures in his spare time. Still, if it wasn't for Hagrid... No. There was something called "visiting", so it should be fine.

Satisfied with his selection of courses, Harry dipped his quill into his ink bottle and began to write.

_Professor McGonagall,_

_I choose to take __Advanced Charms, Advanced Defence Against the Dark Arts, Advanced Herbology, Advanced Transfiguration, and Healing._

_Harry J. Potter_

Setting it aside, he took out another blank piece of parchment.

_Ron, is Hermione doing alright?_

Harry paused. Should he tell Ron about his dream? It doesn't seem to have anything to do with Voldemort. And with the way they keep hiding things from him, can't he do the same? It's not like he had to tell them every single things anyways.

_No, I haven't gotten any visions lately. If I had, I would've told Dumbledore right away. I've gotten 11 Owls, not bad, right?_

_Stay safe,  
Harry_

_P.S. It's spelt "Grimmauld Place", not "Grimold Place"._

Harry, then, opened the next letter. This one was from Hermione.

_How are you, Harry? You're doing fine I hope. Remember, you can tell us anything. After all, what are friends for?_

_Oh, and I've gotten back my OWL results just two days ago. I've only gotten 15. Can you believe that? Only 15! I should've gotten a lot more! _(Harry smiled. That was his good friend, Hermione, ever the perfectionist.) _How did you do? Ron's gotten 8 OWLs. He really should've studied more._

_Hey Harry... _(The writing became a little shaky.) _You know, I've finally realized how you must've felt all these years, having no parents and losing Sirius. Before, I couldn't have imagined it. And although we're closed, Sirius isn't as close to me as he is to you. But now... Oh, Harry! I was horrible! _(Bits and pieces of the rest of the letter were smeared by, what must be, tears, but he could still make the words out.) _I went out shopping with some of my old friends. And then... when I got back home... Everything, everything was destroyed and the Dark Mark was hovering over the neighbourhood. My parents, my neighbours, my friends... All dead! _(The handwriting got a lot messier.)_ They're gone... They're never coming back. They're dead, Harry. All dead because of me! If I wasn't a witch, Voldemort would've never targeted them. It's all my fault!_

_Sorry for rambling there. _(Her handwriting was back to the usual neat block letters again.) _Everything just poured out before I knew it. Anyways, I'm currently staying with the Weasleys because of __that__._

_I have something to ask you, Harry. You're the only person I think of who I can relate to on this. You see, ever since five days ago, I've been having a reoccurring dream — six figures chanting, in a forest, under a lunar eclipse, and emitting different colours of light._

_Do you know what that can mean? I don't believe in divination or anything, but dreaming about the exact same thing for five nights in a row is just too weird. And after knowing about your visions, I think something's going on. But I haven't told anybody else yet. I don't think it had anything to do with Voldemort, but it's really getting on my nerves. I've tried researching about the meaning of dreams, but it doesn't add up._

_A lunar eclipse can symbolize that my feminine side is being overshadowed by something. It can also indicate that some hidden aspect of myself will be revealed. That's reinforced by the light, which can stand for enlightenment and understanding. The forest, or woods, can represent the unknown and the unconscious. Also, although I'm not the one walking into the forest, it may signify a transitional phase. Also, the night can symbolize obstacles, death, rebirth, reflection, or new beginnings._

_So, perhaps, something is going to change in my life. Maybe something hidden shall be revealed to me, kind of like how I discovered that I'm a witch. But, could it be talking about the war? Perhaps something new about the war will be revealed._

_And there were six figures. Six can stand for balance, tranquility, perfection, union, or harmony. And there's that tree stump and the circle the figures made. Circles can be a sign of eternity and wholeness._

_Perhaps, if taken with the other symbols, it could mean that I'm becoming whole or balanced? I don't get it. Or is the war never-ending? Or perhaps, there has to be a balance between light and dark?_

_As I've said, I don't believe in divination, but this dream is just too weird. Or maybe I'm just getting paranoid because of your visions. And for some reason, whenever I tried telling Professor Dumbledore about this, something in me tells me not to. What's going on with me? Am I under a compulsion spell or something?_

_Hermione_

Harry frowned. He, too, have been having the same dream five days in a row, and it was exactly as Hermione had described. As she suggested, something was going on, and he did not like it, not one bit. Taking out another piece of parchment, he started on another letter.

_Hermione, it's not your fault. Isn't that you've always been telling me regarding Sirius' _(He paused.)_ death? Now I'm saying it to you. Their death isn't your fault. They're muggles. Voldemort would've targeted sooner or later._

He winced. He hoped Hermione won't be offended when she read this.

_It was just sooner, that's all. It'll hurt. It'll still hurt years later. The pain will never truly go away. But trust me, it'll fade, not to nothing, but it'll fade. But if you want to talk about it, feel free to tell me. After all, as you've said, what are friends for?_

Harry closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm himself as the images of Sirius falling through the Veil ran through his mind.

_On another note, about that dream of yours, I've actually been having the exact same dream for the past five days. I'm not sure what's going on, but I know for sure that it had nothing to do with Voldemort. I have enough experience with the visions he sent me to know that. Your interpretation seems really good. You sure you're not going for divination? I actually haven't thought of dream interpretation, and we've even covered that in Divination. I hope that dream indicate something good. I'm tired of having my death predicted each and every single time._

_Stay safe,  
Harry_

_P.S. I've gotten 11 OWLs._

Then Harry opened the final envelope, the one with Gringotts' seal on it.

_Mr. Harry J. Potter_

_We would like to remind you of Mr. Sirius Black's will reading which will take place on July 14 at 3 p.m. in Gringotts. Mr. Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore had informed us of your decision to allow him to attend the will reading in your stead. However, we have yet to receive a permission letter for him from you. Please send it to us at least two days before the will reading._

Harry stared at the letter in shock, not believing his eyes. Dumbledore had always been hiding things from him, the prophecy for instance. But this? How could he hide something as important as this? Dumbledore knew just how much Sirius meant to him. The prophecy he could forgive him for; after all, living with such knowledge as a child would ruin his childhood even more than the Dursleys already have. But this he cannot. He was not going to write any permission letters for that old fart, not even under the imperius curse! Well, then again, seeing how he could throw off the curse, it really does not say much. Taking a few deep breaths to calm himself down, he continue to read the letter.

_In addition to that, you are to receive a package from Mr. James Potter and Mrs. Lily Potter. According to their will, you are to personally come to Gringotts at least one week before July 31, 1996 to retrieve it._

_Mankage  
Head of Gringotts_

Scowling, he dipped his quill into the ink opt and started to write a new letter.

_Mr. Mankage_

_I have not been informed of Sirius Black's will reading prior to the letter you have sent regarding Albus Dumbledore's attendance to the will reading in my stead. On that note, I would like to inform you that Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore does not have my permission to attend the will reading in my stead._

_Harry J. Potter_

After the ink dried, Harry sealed the letters and tied it to the leg of the proper owls before sending them off into the night sky with a thank you. A familiar hoot sounded nearby and his ear was suddenly being nibbled upon. He chuckled softly and playfully swatted the offender away, earning him a sharp peck from his snowy owl. "Hey, girl..." he trialed off, walking over to his truck and took out a small pouch. "What do you think about getting out of this hellhole?"

Hedwig hooted with glee, even flapping her wings a few times to show him her approval. Then she flew around the room, carrying some clothes and other things to his bed, telling him to hurry up and pack.

He laughed at her antics. Hedwig was his saving grace in this hellhole. He didn't know how he survived for so long without her. "Okay, we only have five days, including today, to prepare for our escape. First, I'll need to pack. Hedwig, could you help get out some of my things?"

The owl hooted indignantly.

Harry chuckled. "Yes, I know, that's what you've been doing already. Come on, girl, we have a lot of work before us. We need to pack the things we won't be using for the next five days first."

Before he knew it, night left and the sun rose. Like all the mornings since he had learnt to cook, he went down to the kitchen to prepare breakfast — this morning it would consist of omelette, bacon, and toast. By the time he had laid the last dish onto the table, Vernon Dursley had arrived, as grumpy as always. The overweight man, ignoring his nephew, went straight to the table and murdered a cup of coffee before opening the morning newspaper and demanding for another cup. A few minutes later, Petunia Dursley came down as well for her daily cup of Earl Grey. Footsteps stomping down the stairs were the telltale signs of Dudley Dursley's incoming rush to breakfast.

Over the years, they haven't changed much. Vernon, with his distinctive moustache, was still as big and grouchy as ever, and so was his son who could be compared to a small whale who never seemed to be full in any ways. Petunia, however, was still the opposite of the male Dursleys — thin and with an appearance akin to that of a horse. Harry, having come across some old photo albums when he was doing some housework, knew that she can a considered a beauty when she was younger. He really wondered what changed her from that to this.

Ever since they have learnt of Sirius' death (from certain people whom was not to be named), the fear they had disappeared. They had demanded him to do even more housework, as if making up for last summer when they had the threat of Sirius hanging over their heads.

"Boy! Hurry up and get into the car!" Vernon shouted from the front of the house.

Snapping out of his reverie, Harry nodded and got into the back seat of their car (and was purposely squished by his cousin). It was a Sunday today. It meant that it was time for the weekly grocery shopping. And as usual, Harry was going act as the mule. But at least he had a chance to get the supplies needed for his great escape.

And that chance came with the arrival of lunch.

"Boy!"

"Yes, Uncle Vernon?"

The Dursley roughly pushed a hard bun into the teen's hands and said gruffly, "Here's your lunch, boy. Now get out of my sight and come back an hour later."

Grinning inwardly, Harry nodded slowly, hoping to not seem too eager. "Yes, Uncle Vernon," he said monotonously. When his relatives took their eyes off of him, he quickly dashed off to the nearest stores with the time limit hanging over his head. He was really glad that he had converted some wizard money for muggle money earlier on in the year.

His first stop was the pharmacy, where he instantly bought a small bottle of sleeping pills. Then he went into a store he knew sold some hair-related items and darted for the hair dye aisle.

Harry knew that dark hair dyes were out of the question, seeing that his hair was dark. But he also knew that in order for his hair to become light enough to fully take on the light hair dyes, he would probably need to bleach his hair, something that he had no clue how to do.

Or maybe should do something less risky. He remembered overhearing about hair extensions from a group of girls way back then. They also said something about how it can be made to look as if the hair extensions were part of their hair. Yes, maybe that'll work better.

Going to another aisle, he noted that there was quite a large selection of hair extensions. He should probably get some black ones to make his hair seem longer. After all, everyone knew that he had short hair. And he should probably get some coloured ones as well, coloured ones that stood out from the black background they would be placed in. Neon and really bright colours were unacceptable. He did not want to look _that_ eye-catching. And orange with his black hair? He did not want to advertise Halloween, especially since something bad always happen on that day. Red... Well, he had enough red clothing anyways. And green was also kind of associated with him. The dark purple they had was kind of similar to black, so it was useless to him. The only ones which seemed to fit his criteria were the dark blue hair extensions.

As he went to the cash register with his purchase, he noted a make-up aisle. His hand involuntarily strayed to his lightning blot-shaped scar on his forehead. That was the biggest indication he was Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived. He definitely needed to hide it. A cap would have been good, but it might come off and reveal his scar. Yes, he should buy some make-up to hide it.

On his way to the cheaper clothing stores, a store selling coloured contact lenses caught his eye. They would be really useful, seeing that everyone in the Wizarding World knew he had green eyes. The exotic ones were not feasible. And brown eyes would just make him seem like James Potter (bless his soul). Blue eye contacts would be better, and he could say that the blue "highlights" in his hair brings out his eyes.

At the clothing store, he bought a pair of jeans, a black shirt with a white grim reaper on the front, and a black cap (just in case).

After putting everything into his bottomless bag, which cost him around five thousand galleons (a good reason why not many people he knew had one), he immediately made his way back to the Dursleys with ten minutes to spare.

"Boy!" Vernon exclaimed as soon as he spotted the teen. "You're late!"

Harry knew better than to say otherwise and apologized for his lateness and offered to clean the entire house in one day and make a feast as an apology, which they grudgingly accepted.

Now... All he needed to do was to deal with his watchers...

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**What do you think of my**** second ****chapter? Please Read and Review. I would love to know how good and how bad my fics are. If you want to flame me, at least make it constructive criticism.**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize f****ro****m the Harry Potter Series aren't mines, they are J.K. Rowling's. Anything else is mine. **Please ask for permission and getting it before taking my things.

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXX**_

_May fantasy guide your writing through it all - Dementra_


	3. The Inheritance

_**The Forces of Nature**_

**Hi! Thanks for wanting to read this fanfic. I hope you like this story.**

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**Chapter 3 The Inheritance**

Putting on the finishing touches on his scar, Harry looked at the mirror. He looked different, but not _that _different. Using hair extensions, he had further covered his scar and had lengthened his hair until it reached his chest. His hair was also now streaked with dark blue, which brought out his blue eyes (in courtesy of a wondrous invention called coloured contact lenses). He quite liked this look, though preferred the eyes he had inherited from his mother (bless her soul).

"Hedwig, are you ready?"

The owl hooted, quietly as to not wake the Dursleys up, in response.

"Remember the plan," Harry whispered as he opened the window and carefully climbed down. "You must not be seen or be caught. Even if I happen to get caught, don't come after me. Take care of my things and wait until I escape."

Hedwig hooted at flew off.

"See you in a few days," Harry smiled, "And good luck to you too, Hedwig."

Taking a quick glance around, the teen hurriedly ran down the road as fast as he could. The one was on shift at the moment was Mundungus Fletcher. Luckily for Harry, that man was rather inattentive and lazy. Harry had spotted him taking a nap more than once. Still, he can't be too careless.

He did not stop running until he was at least five blocks away. After catching his breath, he looked around to make sure that no one was watching and stuck out his wand. In a flash, much like three years ago, a familiar-looking bus stopped right in front of him. The doors opened and out came the conductor.

"Welcome to de Knight Bus, emergency transport fad a stranded witch ir wizard. Just stick out xhour wan', and stop one broad. We can take hoo anywhere choo wanna go. Ma name's Stan Shunpike, and I'll be chour conductor this evenin'. Where choo goin'?"

"Diagon Alley," Harry replied curtly as he stepped into the bus. The door slammed shut and the engine roared back to life, shaking the entire vehicle as it moved along the road at speeds that would've gotten the driver many tickets should they have been under muggle rules. Somewhat unsteadily, he followed Stan to an empty bed located at the far back.

Looking at him curiously, the conductor asked, "Woss chour name again?"

"I didn't give it," he stated bluntly, in a tone that implied the teen thought Stan was of a lesser ranking, much like how some of the arrogant purebloods he had met did.

There was an awkward pregnant silence on Stan's part after that. "Well... er... um..."

Feeling sorry for him, Harry untied his moneybag. "How much is it?"

Stan stared at him confused.

"To go to Diagon Alley. How much is it?" he asked impatiently. Well, he still had to keep in character after all.

Brought out of his stupor, Stan replied, "Oh... it's fourteen sickles. But fer sixteen, choo get 'ot chocolate. An' for eighteen, choo get n 'ot-wata bottle an' a too'brush in da colour of chour choice."

Harry made a sound of annoyance. "The price's gone up."

"Well, with Choo-Know-Oo 'round and all, more wizards and witches haf been hidin', choo know. Less business..."

Sighing, he took out fourteen silver coins and handed them over to the other man, who then proceeded to go back to the front and sat near the driver.

Harry breathed out a sigh of relief. It was hard keeping up this act. How did certain purebloods that should remain nameless do it so naturally? It just wasn't, well... natural!

It did not take long for the bus to jerk to a stop. "Diagon Alley!" Stan called out loudly.

Getting his act together again, Harry walked out of the bus, acting every bit the arrogant teenager he was portraying. He quickly spotted The Leaky Cauldron and went in. Unlike the previous times he had been there, the pub was not full of wizards and witches, most dressed in robes, chattering and drinking. There was hardly anyone in the room; most of the stools were already neatly tucked under the wooden tables. The room was dark, only dimly lit up by candles.

Without pausing, he walked over to the counter where the bartender, and the owner of the pub, sitting, half asleep. "I wish to rent a room for the night. Are there any more rooms that are free?"

The older man looked up. "Oh! What a surprise. What is a young lad like you doing out here so late?"

Ignoring the inquiry, Harry repeated his question.

Undeterred by the rather cold reply, he nodded. "Why, yes, we do. You're very lucky. There's only one more free room left for tonight." Taking out a piece of parchment, he asked, "What's your name and how long will you be staying here?"

"Harry- son," he said, catching himself just in time. "Evan Harrison. I'll be staying for the night."

"Alright. That'll be three galleons, Mr. Harrison."

Receiving the money, the bartender walked out from behind the counter and gestured for him to follow. He led the teen upstairs, down the hallway, to a wooden door with the number 4 carved into it. "Here you go. Mr. Harrison. There's a black orb in the desk beside the bed. If you have nay problems, just touch it and call for "Tom". Have a good evening, Mr. Harrison." With a small bow, Tom left.

Closing the door behind him, Harry breathed a sigh of relief and then grinned rather manically. Stage one of his plan was perfectly executed, now it was time for stage two — getting an escape plan ready for stage three. After all, he doubted that Dumbledore and his Flaming Chickens would let him go that easily once he showed up for the will reading.

With that thought in mind, Harry, tired form all the excitement of his great escape, slumped over the bed and went to sleep, shoes and all.

The next morning, Harry was up and ready to go by the time the sun had already risen. With a shower, a change of clothing and some breakfast, he went into Diagon Alley, fully intent on changing his appearance a little. After putting on this disguise, he found that he quite liked the long hair with streaks of colour in it, though he probably wouldn't chose blue again.

After asking around, he went into a shop selling eyewear called Eyes For The Sightless. Harry glanced around the store — on the shelves, there were binoculars (some he recognized from the Qudditch World Cup), fake eyes floating in some sort of liquid in jars (was this where Mad-Eye Moody bought his?), glasses of different shapes and sizes, goggles, and much more.

"Hello, how may I help you today?" an old woman asked.

Turning around to face her, Harry smiled. "I'll like to get some contact lenses, coloured and non-coloured. But I've heard that it's not good to always wear contact lenses, so I'll also like to get a new pair of glasses."

The old woman scoffed. "That's only if you buy the muggle ones. The ones we have here are not like that. They're spelled to change according to your prescription and will not irritate your eyes. You can even sleep with them, though it's not recommended. Of course, you'll have to clean them every now and then, especially if you are going to put them on. And as for the coloured ones... For every extra five galleons, you get to add a colour to your contact lenses. You can switch between colours on command. Other than that, you can also get ones equipped with night vision and even x-ray vision. Of course, those are very expensive. Depending on the level of clarity, it can go up to a few ten thousand galleons."

Ah... so that's why he hadn't seen a lot of people with a magical eye like Moody's. "I'll like a set of contact lenses," Harry replied. "And I also want to add sky blue and black to it."

Not commenting on how he requested for blue eyes when he had blue eyes himself, she nodded. "Alright. That'll be three hundred and ten galleons please. Give me half of that now and you can give me the other half later. And I need your name." After he gave her the required amount and information, the old woman said, "Come back in two hours, Mr. Harrision."

Harry, then, headed towards the wizard salon Hairy Solutions. He had forgone the hair part of his disguise for the sake of changing it.

"Welcome! I'm Orion White, the owner of Hairy Solutions. How may I help you today?" The speaker was probably in his late twenties, but one could never really tell in the wizarding world. Harry also noted that Mr. White looked eerily similar to a Malfoy — platinum blonde hair, grey eyes, and all; perhaps he was the descendent of one.

The teen replied, "I would like to length my hair until it is an inch or two pass my shoulders. I would also like to length my bangs by about an inch. You can do that, right?" When Mr. White nodded, Harry continued on. "After that I would like to add some silver streaks in my hair. I'll leave the design up to you."

About twenty minutes later, Mr. White set down the hair dye potion with a satisfied smirk. "What do you think?" he asked, holding out a mirror behind Harry's head to show him the back.

Harry nodded in appreciation. After paying for the service and saying 'thank you', the teen left for Gringotts. He needed more money, and it was also the perfect opportunity to get the package his parents left him.

Upon spotting a Gringotts goblin at one of the counters, he walked over and handed him the letter he received from Mankage. "I wish to speak to Mr. Mankage about an inheritance I was supposed to receive."

Beady black eyes read over the letter and then stared at him suspiciously, but Harry did not twitch and met his gaze calmly. After what seemed like eternity, the goblin nodded slowly. "Right... Come this way, Mr. Potter." Harry was then led to a door with the word "MANKAGE" carved into a golden nameplate hanging on it. The goblin knocked the door twice. "Mr. Potter has arrived."

The door swung opened and a deep voice called out, "Mr. Potter, come on in."

Entering the room and sitting down on an armchair provided, Harry faced the Head of Gringotts. "Mr. Mankage, I believe that you have something that belongs to me in your possession, aren't I correct?"

The goblin nodded. "Yes, you are Mr. Potter. But first..." He took out a piece of parchment and a small knife. "Add a few drops of blood onto this parchment. It's a standard procedure for important occasions such as this. We don't want to leave the inheritance in the wrong hands, now would we? I'm sure you won't mind it if you're truly who you say you are, Mr. Potter."

Harry only smiled in response. "I have nothing to hide regarding this matter." Without further ado, the teen cut his finger with the knife and let a few drops of blood to fall. He vaguely noticed his wound healing soon after.

As soon as the blood touched the parchment, it spread out and formed words.

_Harry James Potter  
Father: James Potter  
Mother: Lily Evans_

Mankage tapped the parchment with a spiny finger, which made it void of words once more, and put it away. Then he stood up, walked over to the shelf behind him, opened one of the drawers with a key, took out a large envelope and a package, and handed them to Harry. "Here you go, Mr. Potter."

"Thank you." With slightly shaking hands, Harry opened the envelope and took out a small stack of parchments.

_Heya Prongslet! It's your ATTRACTIVE, BRILLIANT, GOOD-LOOKING, ALL LADY'S DESIRE, and did I mention, HANDSOME dad talking here! _(Harry chuckled.) _How are ya, ma boy? All fine and dandy I bet! You're in Gryffindor, right? Of course, you'd had to be, you're a __Potter__, for Merlin's sake! Well, even if you're not for some odd reason, as long as you're not a slimy snake, then all is well._

Then the handwriting changed from being messy to being neat and cursive.

_Don't listen to your father, Harry. Even if you __do__ end up in Slytherin, we'll still love you all the same. And if he doesn't, I'll bash his head in. _(Harry chuckled again. He could picture that already.) _We really should get back on topic. Well, first of all, we're very sorry, Harry. If you're reading this, then it means that you're almost 16 and that James and I are dead._

The handwriting changed back again.

_I'd better have died a glorious death for an important cause instead of something stupid and boring like choking to death or being killed by __Snape__ of all people._ (Harry smiled bitterly. His father got his wish of dying gloriously and not by Snape's hands; but it still didn't change the fact that he was now dead.) _Anyways, enough of talking about my death, let's get back to the main topic._

_If our will had been followed, after our death, you should be in the custody of our good roguishly handsome (though not as handsome as I) best friend, Padfoot, also known as Sirius Black. However, if he was not fit to be your guardian, for one reason or another, you'll be in the hands of Frank and Alice Longbottoms, or Minerva _

_McGonagall... and a whole list of other friends. But under no circumstances are you to be placed under the care of my dear beautiful Lily's terrible sister Petunia Evans, though I think she's got married to a Vernon Dursley. Dreadful muggles, they are. You should steer far away from them._

Harry frowned. Then it meant that Dumbledore hadn't respected his parents' wishes at all. He could get charged for that, couldn't he?

Then it was his mother's turn.

_Don't listen to your dad. Petunia is not that terrible. She was a good sister. It's just that, after my Hogwarts letter came, we were all so excited about it, and Petunia was often ignored because of that. I regret that very deeply. If I had tried to include her more, she wouldn't be as bitter about magic and the wizarding world as she is today. And your Uncle Vernon is just really rough around the edges. Don't mind his actions or words too much. Not every muggle is accepting of the wizarding world. It's sad, I know. And it's one of the reasons behind the witch burnings back then. People fear what they don't understand, and that fear leads to hate._

The teen smiled. It was just like his mother to be such a kind and caring person, even to someone like the Dursleys. He can't forget them for what they have done to him, but at the very least, they had taken him in. The Dursleys could have easily ditched him in an alleyway somewhere and no one would've known better. He was neglected, yes. He was forced to do chores, yes. He was verbally abused, yes. But they had never sexually abused or physically abused him (hitting him once in a while for his wrongdoings do not count as abuse, or at least he didn't think so; but did Dudley's bullying count?). They had even allowed him to go to school. That's already pretty decent, considering they hated what he was. He had heard about parents who abuse their child, born of their flesh and blood, in all ways. Vile creatures they are. He was lucky that the Dursleys hadn't done that to him.

_This doesn't only apply to muggles. It applies to us as well. One of our friends, Remus Lupin, is a werewolf. He's been ostracized nearly all his life, all because of something he can't control. Wizards fear werewolves and other creatures, because they are powerful, because they are different. Wizards and witches do not understand them, and hence, dub them "dark" and isolate them. It's not something to be proud of. Wizards look upon muggles and see their ugly side, but they can't see their own, even though the two sides are reflections of one another._

_Don't grow up to be like them. Different or not, a life is a life. There's a reason for their existence. They deserve a chance to live. Don't ostracize others. Just think about it. Being ostracized is not a good feeling. You don't want it to happen to yourself, do you? Then don't do it to others._

Harry nodded. He understood what his mother was saying. It didn't feel nice being bullied, being labelled, being isolated, being feared. And he had first-hand experience in them all.

_Come on now! I've just got him out of depressing thoughts such as our deaths. And now you're bringing him back in? What kind of mother are you?_

_The best kind._

_Ignore your mother over there. She's a Ravenclaw in Gryffindor skin._

_And you're a Slytherin in Gryffindor skin._

Harry chuckled at his parents' antics.

_Hey! I resent that! While we're really sneaky, like a Slytherin (as much as I hated to admit it), it's because we're pranksters. And no pranksters have __ever__ come from Slytherin. Trust me. I'm a Gryffindor through and through. And speaking of pranks, remember to pull a lot of pranks at school, especially on the Slytherins. You're the son, the godson, and the nephews of the four God of Pranksters respectively. Do us proud and wreck havoc wherever you go._

He supposed he had been wrecking havoc, unintentionally of course. It's not as if he had planned to vanquish Voldemort, do accidental magic at the Dursleys, defeat Voldemort again, kill a Basilisk, help Sirius escape (okay, maybe he did plan that), join the Triwizarding tournament, duel a revived Voldemort and escape, create a defence club right under the teachers' nose (Hermione came up with that), and break into the Ministry of Magic (no, wait, he did plan that).

_If possible, become an Animagus like your gorgeous, dashing dad. In our will, we have included the one and only Marauders' Road to Becoming an Animagus. I would've given it to you sooner, but your lovely mother threatened to castrate me if I did. That party pooper._

Harry chuckled again. From what he had gathered of his mother's personality, he could imagine her threatening to do such a thing.

_What your father and his friends did was very reckless. When you're young, your magical core isn't as developed and your control over magic isn't as good, so things may go wrong if you perform more complicated magic. Becoming an Animagus is definitely one of those kind of magic you shouldn't do unless you have a good grasp on magic. Your father and his friends are very lucky that everything went alright for them._

_Lily, that hurts... That really does. How can you put our success down to luck?_

_It's because it mostly is._

_Harry! Your mother is picking on me!_

The teen laughed.

_Shush. Aren't you supposed to show your mature side to your son?_

_I am mature, thankyouverymuch._

_Real mature Potter. No offence to you, Harry dear._

No offence taken, mom, Harry thought fondly.

_Have you ever heard of Occolmeny and Legmeny?_

_It's Occulmency and Legilimency, James._

_Yes, that. Well, if you haven't I'll give you a brief overrun on them. They're both a branch of mind magic. The one that starts with an L is the one that has something to do with mind reading. And the one that starts with an O is the one that has something to do with protecting your mind, meaning blocking the people who use the one that starts with an L._

_If that's the way you explained how to become an Animagus in your notes, I fear for our son._

_Don't worry. If Harry is as smart as his dad and mom, he'll have no problem understanding it. Anyways, Legmeny _(There was a jagged line of ink.)_ Ouch, your mom just hit me. Let me tell you something, son. Your mother has a wicked right hook. Gave McNair a bruise that lasted for a few days. I'm so proud of her._

_Back to the main topic... Legmeny, I mean, Legilimency is illegal is be used on others without permission, not that it stopped certain people from doing so. Luckily, Occulmency is not. Other than the wondrous Marauders' Road to Becoming an Animagus, we're also going to give you a few books on the topic of mind magic. Wouldn't want Dumbledore, provided that he's still the Headmaster, to know what pranks you're planning next._

_Ignore that part, dear. Your father is just as immature as ever. I don't know what led me into marrying him._

_Because I'm roguishly handsome, gorgeous, brilliant, dashing, not to mention breathtaking._

_You'd better not have an ego as big as your father's. Anyhow, learn these two arts. It'll be very useful to you, especially if the war with the Dark Lord is still going on. But I dearly wish that it would've been stopped by now. If not, don't despair over it. There's always a light within the darkness. You'd just have to keeping hoping and actively search for it. Wishes don't lead to anything, or at least, not on their own. Actions play the largest roles in getting what you desire._

_Yeah, what your mother said. And since you're the only one left of the Potter family, you are eligible to take the position of the Potter family Head. Just ask the goblins for the Potter signet ring. If you say the name of a property registered under that ring, you'd be instantly portkeyed over to it, provided that no anti-portkey wards had been put up. Also, as the family head, you can apply for emancipation despite your age, meaning you get all the rights of an adult._

_Remember, live fast, die young, and leave a good-looking corpse behind, Prongslet!_

_The ever handsome lady's man,_

_James Potter._ (There was a rough sketch of a deer beside it.)

_Don't listen to your father, Harry. But do live a fascinating and meaningful life without any regrets._

_Love you forever,_

_Lily Evans-Potter_

Harry smiled fondly at the parchments and carefully placed it back into the envelope. This was definitely something that he would treasure. And he would read the books later.

Now back to business... The teen looked at the goblin. "Mr. Mankage, I would like to read my parents' will. And I also want the Potter signet ring. As the only Potter left, I believe that I'm eligible for it."

Mankage nodded.

"Right, Mr. Potter, we'll get to that later. You also said you wish to see your parents' will." He stood up and walked over to the shelves behind him again. "You are lucky, Mr. Potter. Usually, we dispose of the will five years after the reading, but Mr. and Mrs. Potter specifically stated to dispose of it seventeen years after the reading in their will. No doubt that they were expecting you to ask for it within that time period."

He took out a black orb about the size of his palm, placed it on his desk and tapped it three times with his finger, saying a few words in a language Harry did not understand. Immediately, two holographic figures came out, both human-sized. They looked just like how Harry first saw them in the Mirror of Erised during his first year at Hogwarts. His father (with his messy black hair and glasses framing his hazel brown eyes, which were filled with mischievousness) was grinning widely as if he was going to a wild party instead of making a will. Next to him, about one head shorter was his mother with his wavy fiery red hair and emerald green eyes. She was the one who actually looks like she was about to do something serious.

"_This is James Potter speaking, sound intelligent mind and absolutely SEXY bodae!"_ James even made a few poses as he said that, making Harry laugh softly, and earning himself a whack on the head from his wife.

"_Don't mind, James. He's just being his idiotic self. Anyways, this is Lily Evans speaking, also of sound mind and body. I assure you that we went through a few Mediwizards before coming here."_

James grinned, _"Now, let's get to the _fun_ stuff. First of all, to my dear black sheep of the Blacks a.k.a. Padfoot a.k.a. Sirius Black, I grant you a million galleons, not that you need anymore, but whatever. You can also get all of my pranking supplies, except the cloak, but remember to share them with Moony. I'm not giving him any._" He huffed._ "He'll either throw them away or not put them to good use._

"_Next, to our furry friend, Moony! A.k.a. Remus Lupin. To you I grant to a million galleons! Get some better looking clothing and get yourself some Wolfsbane Potion. Don't spend them all on books, you bookworm. You could also have the Potter Cottage located in Switzerland. You've always loved it there." _James shrugged. _"Don't know why, but to each their own._

"_To Peter Pettigrew, my wormy friend, I give you a million galleons. You also need some good clothes. And get yourself a girl and take her out on a good date. Not every girl is like Rebecca, you know. Just look at my beautiful, stunning Lily!_

"_Now, to my _dear_ Minerva McGonagall, I grant you…"_ From his pocket, he took out a moving picture of him blowing a kiss and one with him half-naked and making various poses _"a whole stack of pictures like these!"_ Harry laughed. He could already picture Professor McGonagall's dismayed face. _"And you'll also get a thousand galleons for having to keep up with the Marauders for seven years._

_For dear _old_ Professor Albus Dumbledore, I'll give you three thousand galleons. I'll also lend you my invisibility cloak and the key to Harry's trust fund. You are to give both of them to him upon his first year at Hogwarts or any other school, magic or otherwise."_ Harry frowned. He definitely did not receive any keys from Dumbledore, not first year, not any years after that. "_Remember the money in the trust fund is not to be touched by anyone but our son, Harry._

_I'll give two thousand galleons to my dear Poppy Promfey. This is the thanks for taking care of the Marauders for all these years."_

Then it was Lily's turn to speak. _"To Professor Flitwick for teaching me the fine art of charms, I'll grant you a thousand galleons._

_To my dear friend, Alice Longbottom, I grant you three thousand galleons for being such a good a friend and helping me all those times._

_As for our son, Harry James Potter, he is to have ownership of everything else. Also, Sirius Black, his godfather, is to be given guardianship over him. If he is not available for certain reasons, Frank and Alice Longbottom are to be given guardianship over him. The third one would be Minevra McGonagall. If neither of the above is available for some reason or another, Albus Dumbledore may choose who to have guardianship over Harry. But!"_ She glared heatedly at the audience _"Under no circumstances is Harry be given to Vernon and Petunia Dursley!"_ Beside her, James nodded in agreement.

Harry rolled his eyes. That was another thing that Dumbledore had not followed.

"_Last but not least, thank you all for being there for us in our times of need."_

Then the hologram disappeared.

Instantly, Harry asked, "Mr. Mankage, is there any way that I can get a copy of this?"

The goblin shook his head. "My apologies, Mr. Potter, but you can get a pensive and put that memory of it in there."

'_Note to self: get a pensive.'_ Then the teen questioned, "As stated in the will, Dumbledore was supposed to give me my trust fund key when I'm in the first year of Hogwarts, but he didn't. Is there any ways I could get it back, or cancel his and make a new one for me?"

Mankage looked at him thoughtfully. "We could change the lock for you if you like, but that would cost you a hundred galleons. Or, you can open up another account and terminate the one you have currently, at the cost of two hundred galleons."

"Do I have any other accounts in Gringotts other than my trust funds?"

"Yes," the goblin nodded. "You still have the Potter family vault available. However, you can only have access to them when you turn seventeen or when you become the Head of the Potter family."

Harry's eyes lit up. "Oh, yes, speaking of that... you said that you would bring out the Potter signet ring."

"Yes, of course, Mr. Potter." Mankage placed his hand through a foggy orb on his desk and said something in an odd language. When his hand came out, so did a black box. He opened it, revealing a ring, and handed it over to Harry. "Here is the Potter signet ring, Mr. Potter. Put it on. If it accepts you, then nothing harmful would happen to you and you would be stuck with it for the rest of your life. Upon your death, it would return back to Gringotts. However, if it doesn't, the defence mechanism will activate; and I'll highly advice you to quickly take it off," Mankage said with a nasty grin, as if anticipating that.

Taking the silver ring, Harry placed it on his right middle finger. Instantaneously, a sudden bout of warmth spread over his entire body. After waiting for a few more seconds, just in case, Harry asked, "May I see a list of my assets now?"

The goblin handed a scroll over to him. "Press the signet ring on the wax seal at the top."

Harry nodded, unrolled it, and did as told. Ink spread across the parchment and formed a world map with five red dots loitered around; each of them had the name of the properties he owned as the Head of the Ancient and Noble House of Potter. Underneath that map was a list of vaults (namely the Potter family vault and his trust fund), the amount of money he currently had, the items held in the vaults as well as their current value, and the investments under the Potter name (apparently, he owned twenty percent of the broomstick industry, an investment that had been growing with each new broomstick).

To date, he had around five million galleons in cash. But he knew the pains of being poor (poor compared to his cousin, at least) and he grew up hearing about Uncle Vernon's investment strategies. As much as he disliked the man, he knew that Uncle Vernon was quite the businessman. After all, it took a lot of money to keep up with Dudley's whims. It looked like he would have to rack his brains for his childhood memories regarding the conversations he had overheard, a task which is easier said than done, especially since he had not paid his uncle's business strategies any heed as a child.

Harry requested, "I want to transfer everything in my trust funds to my family vaults. Dumbledore doesn't have access to them, I believe."

"No, he does not. And it shall be done immediately."

"I also want to apply for emancipation."

"You'll have to take that up with the Ministry of Magic. Gringotts have no authority to issue such a thing unless the emancipation of an individual came with the will of the deceased. And as you already know, James and Lily Potter did not include your emancipation in their will."

Harry was disappointed but quickly shook it off. He'll deal with that latter. "Mr. Mankage, are there any ways that I could get money without having always come to Gringotts? I'm probably going to go on a shopping spree, but I don't know how much money I'll need."

Mankage nodded and took out a small black bag with the Gringotts symbol on it. "As a family Head, you are eligible for this. Just for a hundred galleons, you can have this money bag keyed into your vaults. To take money out, you need to place your signet ring into the bag, say the name of the vault and the amount you need. However, you can't do that for the other items you have in the vault."

Thanking the goblin for his help, Harry went back into Diagon Alley for more shopping, seeing that he still had an hour to spare before his contact lenses were ready.

By the time the hour was up, Harry had bought all of his school supplies for next year, some books of interest, a small penisive, some clothes, two small knifes (who knows what would happen this year) and a holster for each (one he tied onto his right thigh and the other he kept on his left arm), a wand holster (which was worn on his right arm), and some owl supplies for Hedwig. All of which he had shrunk and placed into his bottomless bag. (Over the years, he had discovered that the underage restrictions do not really apply in areas saturated in magic as the trace becomes confused.)

After retrieving his contact lenses and paying for them, he channelled his magic through his ring and said, "Golden Palace." Instantly, he felt the familiar pull of a portkey, jerking him forwards and the images around him spun.

Within seconds, the sensations abruptly halted, and he fell down onto the ground, bottoms first. Groaning, he got up and patted the dirt and grass off of his pants. He hated portkeys.

Harry looked around. The name did it no justice. Or rather, the place did the name no justice. There was nothing golden about the building besides the occasional pillar and windowsill; burgundy was the dominating colour. And it was definitely no palace. It was more like a really big house or a small mansion.

Popping sounds were heard, followed by squeaky voices crying, "Master Lord Potter sir! Master Lord Potter sir!"

He looked downwards to see two house elves dressed in dark red uniforms outlined with gold. "Who are you?" he asked.

"Master Lord Potter sir! I is Ruby and he is Toby, Master Lord Potter sir!" one of them squeaked.

"Yeah, about that... Just call me Harry."

"Yes, Master Harry sir!" they squeaked.

He just sighed. "It's Harry. _Just _Harry. None of that "Master Harry sir" nonsense. Now, are the two of you the only house elves in the Golden Palace?"

"Yes, Master Harry sir!"

Harry sighed again, knowing that there was no way to change their minds.

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**What do you think of my**** third ****chapter? Please Read and Review. I would love to know how good and how bad my fics are. If you want to flame me, at least make it constructive criticism.**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize f****ro****m the Harry Potter Series aren't mines, they are J.K. Rowling's. Anything else is mine. **Please ask for permission and getting it before taking my things.

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_May fantasy guide your writing through it all - Dementra_


	4. The Will Reading

_**The Forces of Nature**_

**Hi! Thanks for wanting to read this fanfic. I hope you like this story.**

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**Chapter 4 The Will Reading**

It was fianlly time for the show to begin.

Donning on one of his new silver-rimmed black robes and new dragon hide (ironically of the Hungarian Horntal) boots, Harry flooed over to Diagon Alley and made his way towards Gringotts. Just like before, he handed the Gringotts letter over to a goblin behind the counter.

Reading it, the goblin stared at him suspiciously before nodding slowly. "Yes, do come this way, Lord Potter."

The duo silently walked through the golden hallways, passing the occasional Gringotts goblins and Wizarding folks. Before long, they reached a wooden door with the words "Will Reading Room" curved into a golden nameplate. Hearing some voices floating out, Harry gestured for the goblin to halt.

"I'm sure that everyone's here," the teen heard Dumbledore say. "We could start the will reading now."

"No, not everyone involved has arrived yet. We are still missing one Mr. Harry James Potter," the voice of Mankage replied matter-of-factly.

"Actually, Harry had sent me a letter telling me to substitute for him as he's still grieving and he doesn't think that he could handle it all yet. Here, take a look."

Having heard enough, Harry pushed the door opened and said, "I'm sorry for being late. The traffic was horrible today." All heads immediately turned towards him, their eyes widening in surprise. Taking in their expressions, he smirked, "What? No hellos for lil ole me?"

Like a dam that was broken, shouts of "Harry" and "Potter, among other things (such as "What happened to your hair?" and "Where are your glasses?"), came rushing out of their mouths. Quickly recovering from his surprise, Dumbledore strode over to him, his blue eyes ever twinkling. "Harry, my boy!" he exclaimed. "I thought you were at your relatives? What are you doing here so far away from there?" he asked grandfatherly.

Harry ignored the first question. He was positive that, if his watchers were actually spying on him and not slacking off, Dumbledore would have already known of his absence from his relatives' place. "What am I doing here?" he replied. "I'm here for the same reason you all are — to hear Sirius's will."

The Headmaster of Hogwarts looked at him in disapproval. "You know that it's dangerous to go out on your own. Why didn't you owl us about this?"

Harry, adopting an innocent expression, cocked his head slightly to the side. "Dangerous? So I shouldn't be here because it's "dangerous"? I thought it's because I was still "grieving". Which one is it?" His eyes hardened. "And for the record, you are neither my relative nor my guardian, Professor; so, please refrain from butting into my personal matters." Before Dumbledore could retort back, Harry addressed the goblin in charge. "Everyone that matters have arrived, I believe. Can we get going with the will reading, Mr. Mankage?"

"Of course, Lord Potter."

"What!" several voices exclaimed.

"What is the meaning of this, my boy?" Dumbledore asked sternly, his eyes no longer twinkling.

Harry smiled, smug that he had gotten over one on the Headmaster, who _always_ seemed to know _everything_ about almost everyone. "It means exactly as he said." He lifted up his right hand for all to see. "I am the current Head of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter."

As the two wizards were conversing, Manage took out a black orb and laid it on the desk before them. Saying a few words in Gobbledegook, a holographic picture of a grinning Sirius Black appeared; everyone instantly quieted down when they noticed it.

"_Here I am, the brilliant heartbreaker, Sirius Black, of sound mind, or as sound as I can be after being in Azkaban for twelve years, and _absolutely _semxy body!"_ Following that, he spent the next few minutes posing, which earned quite a few groans from the audience. _"You folks are sitting around in a cramped room listening to my _orgasm_-worthy voice because I, much to the despair of the world, had kicked the bucket before any of you. It's a pity really. I was hoping to dance around Death Eater graves."_ He shrugged. _"Oh well, whatever, you can't have everything in your life. As long as I don't die from something stupid such as choking to death or suffocation because I slept the wrong way, it's alright. I'd better have died splendidly in a battle against the Dark Poo and his Munchers."_ Rubbing his hands together enthusiastically, he said, _"Now, let's get to the good part, the part where all you greedy bastards are eagerly waiting for."_

Straightening his back like a proper noble and coughing into his fist, Sirius said solemnly, _"To my dear Andromeda Tonks, I grant your family a million galleons. Oh yeah, dear Nymphadora is here too!" _He laughed. _"Since my smexy self is currently pushing up daisies, you can't __do anything about me calling you Nymphadora."_ Said witch glared hard at his grinning, semi-translucent form. Taking a deep breath, Sirius blurted out, _"Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, Nymphadora, and _Nymphadora_!"_

After catching his breath, he wiped invisible sweat off his brow._ "Whew, that was tiring. Now, let's go onward to the..." _He paused. _"...Weasleys! Arthur Weasely, Molly Weasley, Fred Weasley, George Weasley, Ronald Weasley, and Ginvera Weasley get a hundred thousand galleons each for taking care of Harry all those years."_ From the corner of his eyes, Harry spotted Ron frowning in disappointment. The teen snorted. Ron had probably hoped for a lot more since they were a big family and they were Harry's friends; also since the three Tonks got more than the six Weasleys put together. But there were nine Weasleys, weren't there? William, Charlie and Percival Weasley were missing from the list. Perhaps Sirius didn't know them as well or something. Oh well, whatever, he shouldn't ponder over it so much; it was Sirius's right to do what he wished with his assets.

"_To Hermione Jane Granger, I bestow you with a hundred thousand galleons for being there for Harry all those years." _Sirius smirked teasingly, _"Go and get some books, you bookworm!"_ The witch smiled, tears glistening in her eyes. _"With my powers invested in me as the Head of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, I declare Bellatrix Lestrange disowned from the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, and Andromeda Tonks and Nymphadora Tonks to be welcomed back into the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black."_ Both Tonks grinned happily and gratefully at the holograph._ "As for Narcissa Malfoy, Draco Malfoy, and the rest of my blood relatives who has not been mentioned yet, I'll leave your fate to the next Head of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black."_ Everyone leaned forward in anticipation of hearing the name of the next Head.

Only to be disappointed.

Dragging on the suspense, Sirius continued happily, _"Next, to Albus Dumbldore with his long beard and even longer name, I'll leave you with fifty thousand galleons."_ Harry subtlety turned his head towards the old wizard. His lips twitched upon seeing the headmaster frowning._ "You have too much money anyways,"_ the Black said nonchalantly, _"being the Head of the Noble House of Dumbledore and all."_

Then excitement crept back into his dark blue eyes. _"And to the _only_ official, _living_ Marauder, Remus John Lupin..."_ Fred and George Weasley stared at the werewolf with awe in their eyes. They fidgeted in their seats, barely holding themselves back from running towards one of their idol. _"...yours truly graciously grant you two million galleons. Now that I'm on the other side, you can't push the money back to me again."_ Sirius stuck his tongue out childishly. _"Go out and spoil yourself silly and get yourself some certain potion for your furry little problem." _Remus smiled upon hearing that old joke. _"The ownership of Number Twelve Grimmauld Place is all yours, including everything that comes with it like Kretcher. You really should stop living in the little rundown shack you call home. And free feel to get rid of Kretcher and get yourself a new house elf." _Harry glanced over at Hermione, knowing how she felt about house elves. True to his suspicions, she was frowning at the two Marauders in disapproval. _"I'll also leave you with all our Marauder stuff that I still have. Feel free to prank anyone you want. Remember once a Marauder, always a Marauder,"_ Sirius scowled,_ "except for snivelling traitorous rats, of course."_

Clapping his hands, he continued, _"And last, but not least, my favourite godson, Harry James Potter!_"

"I'm your _only_ godson," Harry muttered to himself, but smiling all the same.

"_I entitle you everything else that I own, including the title of being the next Head of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black."_ Gasps were heard all around the room. Harry chuckled nervously when he felt the stares of practically everyone present. _"Also, as your legal magical guardian, I grant you emancipation. Just sign some papers I've already prepared for you and you'll become a legal adult before the law, both magical and muggle. Live your life to the fullest the way you wish. Neither your parents nor I will condemn you for any choice you make. Remember, Prongslet, we'll always be there cheering for you and watching over you spiritually. Now," _he pumped a fist into the air enthusiastically,_ "go and turn the world upside down!"_ With that said, the hologram disappeared, indicating the end of the will reading.

Harry smiled bitterly. That sounded really like Sirius, a Sirius before his depression from begin caged inside his ancestral home, Number 12 Grimmauld Place, by a certain leader of the Order of the Phoenix. But truthfully, Sirius might have been better off dead. The Black didn't come out of Azkaban unscathed. In the summer of his fifth year, when Harry was brought out of the Dursleys place and into the Order's Headquarters, he had witnessed some of Sirius' madness. There were nights when Harry couldn't sleep and overheard Sirius having nightmares, whimpering in fear, sometimes even screaming. There were also times when Sirius was stuck in the past and called him "James" or "Prongs". Now, his dear godfather can finally be with his dear family, namely the Potters, and friends again in the afterlife. He does not need to stay in the realm of the living where grief, hatred, madness, and pain resided anymore. He was finally freed of the chains that held him down.

"Please come this way, Lord Potter."

Snapping out of his thoughts, the teen nodded and followed Mankage into the room next door, completely ignoring the others' protests. After about an hour of reading documents and fine scripts (which he needed a magnifying glass for) and signing them, he become a legal adult under the law, both muggle and magical, and the Head of the Noble and Most Ancient Houses of Black and Potter. He also keyed his new vaults to his moneybag via his Black signet ring, which he had placed on his left middle finger.

Not surprisingly, when he got out of the room, he noticed not a single one of them had left the room. Most of their stares were on him, except for the Weasley twins who were busy fawning over an embarrassed Remus. Sighing in annoyance, Harry said, "Okay, those who want something because, and _only_ because, I'm the new Head of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, please stand over to the right side of the room. Everyone else, could you please stand over to the left side of the room?"

Within minutes, they have all moved around the room as instructed, though some were quite reluctant to do so. Looking at the groups assembled, Harry rolled his eyes and sighed. Just as he had suspected, everyone on the left side of the room is connected to the Order one way or another. In the other group, there were only Naricissa and Draco Malfoy, and Andromeda and Nymphadora Tonks (though the latter was only there because of her mother).

"Despite whom we're married to or are born to, the five of us—yes, even me," he added upon seeing their disbelieving looks. "My grandmother was a Black," Harry elaborated. "Sirius showed me the family tree. Anyways, we all have Black blood running through our veins, and I have no intention of _ever_ severing that bond, unless you do to earn such a thing. I'm not including Bellatrix Lestrange and her descendents, should she have any, as I wish to honour Sirius's will. However, I won't be giving you anything either, not today at least. I still have some things to check as the new Head before I do so."

Like the pureblood noble she was, Mrs. Malfoy gave a swift nod in understanding before silently sauntered out of the room, with her head held up high proudly and her body moving gracefully. It was obvious that she had expected him to disown them. Draco followed suit, wearing a scowl on his fair face.

Harry frowned slightly. Was it his imagination? Or was the air bristling with static? No, it was probably his imagination. Looking at the other side of the room, he declared, "And as for you, I'm _not_ going with you. I'm the Head of the Noble and Most Ancient Houses of Potter and Black, and am, as of now, a legal adult under the law. So, you have absolutely no rights to make me go with you without having to make it a kidnapping. And there are the Gringotts goblins here that may act as the witnesses."

The people from the Order stilled in the midst of walking towards him. It was something that cannot deny, especially if they have witnesses that have heard their every word. And it was well-known that goblins are greedy bastards. With his assets as Lord Potter and Lord Black, Harry could easily pay them to be his witnesses. On the other hand, it would be harder for them to pay the goblins to _not_ do so.

"My boy, you_ must_ come with us," Dumbledore insisted. "It's not safe for you to be alone. You know that Voldemort-" many in the room flinched "-and his Death Eaters are after you."

Harry did not falter in his stance. "Please address me either as Mr. Potter or Lord Potter-Black. You and I are merely Headmaster and student. You have no right to address me so familiarly. As for being alone... Where I'm staying at, I'm not alone." There were Hedwig, Toby, and Ruby to keep him company back at the Golden Palace.

The Supreme Mugwump instantly latched onto that. "You're not alone, you say? Then who are you staying with? We know that you're currently not staying at your relatives or any of us. It's dangerous. Who knows who they are. They could be Voldemort's-" many flinched "-followers for all you know."

Harry sighed, resisting the urge to massage his temples. He had a headache from this tiring day, and they seriously weren't helping him at all. Why can't Dumbledore just back off? "Actually, there's no way that they could be his followers. I'm safe with them. And, as I've said, how my summer goes has nothing to do with you, Professor. It's outside of Hogwarts justification. And don't even try to bring me being a minor or being my magical guardian into this," the teen warned. "I'm emancipated as of a few minutes ago, if you've forgotten, which I seriously doubt. You have no authority over me regarding my personal life and outside of Hogwarts."

This was the last straw for Mrs. Weasley, whose face had gone as red as a tomato. "Harry!" the matron cried out furiously, slammed her hands on the desk before her. "That's no way to speak to your elders. Apologise this instant!"

"I have nothing to apologize for," the young Lord replied unfalteringly. "Everything I've said is the truth. He's been imposing on my personal matters, even though I've clearly stated that I want him to butt out of them. If there's anyone who needs to do the apologizing, it's him. Good day." With that said, Harry turned to leave, only to find his arm being held in a tight grasp, and the floor seemed to have shook for a split second.

"Harry!" exclaimed Hermione, whom he dimly noticed had straightened her hair over the summer and had it pulled into a half-ponytail. "Professor Dumbledore is just worried about your safety. What if Voldemort or his Death Eaters attack you? You know that you're their main target."

"I _am_ safe where I'm staying," he said simply. Then, quickly shaking his arm out of the stunned girl's grip, Harry ran away before the rest of the Order had the chance to snap out of their stupor. "See you at Hogwarts!" he called out as he left the door. Twisting his lithe body around (in courtesy of his hands-on training, intentional or not, throughout his life), he speedily dodged the goblins and the passer-bys in the corridors. By the time the Order started chasing him, it was already too late. Their body, much to their dimay, was not as small or as flexible, hence giving him plenty of time to get out of the magical barriers surrounding Gringotts. Upon leaving, Harry concentrated on the Golden Palace via the Potter ring and portkeyed out of Diagon Alley.

Hermione left the building just as Harry disappeared into thin air. She growled in frustration. Why can't Harry just trust them? Weren't they friends? Didn't they go through five years of hardship together? Why can't Harry just trust them with his whereabouts?

She turned to the side. "Professor," Hermione asked. "What should we do?" She knew that the Headmaster was not all-knowing or all-powerful through her years of adventures at Hogwarts; nevertheless, he was someone to be respected and feared.

The old wizard smiled kindly. "Just remember to try and keep contact with Harry. And, if he tell you where he is staying at or about his dreams, please inform me immediately."

They nodded.

Hermione bit her lips lightly as she portkeyed back to the Burrow. But she knew Harry. Harry was someone who can keep secrets. He wouldn't tell them of his whereabouts if he didn't want to make it known; that, she was sure of.

She had been going on and on about how Harry should trust her more. But... Hadn't her mother once said that trust is something two-sided? To earn trust, you first have to give trust. Perhaps she hadn't trusted him enough. Perhaps what he said was true, perhaps he really wasn't in any danger. And, hadn't he proved, time and time again, he can be trusted?

Hermione let out a breath she didn't know she was holding and smiled.

Yes. That was what she'd do. She'll trust him to know what he was doing and trust him to come to her for help when he needed it.

"Meow!"

Chuckling, she opened her arms as her half-kneazle half-cat leaped into her arms. "Crookshanks!" she grinned.

"Meow..." he purred, nuzzling her neck.

"Are you hungry?" she asked, walking back into the Burrow.

"Meow!"

On her way to the kitchen, she spied Ron stomping up the stairs, mumbling furiously to himself, but paid him no heed; she was in no mood to deal with his temper tantrums.

The youngest male Weasley, on the other hand, didn't even notice her presence as he headed up to his room, with thoughts of Harry occupying his mind.

It wasn't fair! How come Harry always got to have everything? Money. Fame. Power. And he was always left at the side in his shadow. It just wasn't fair. Not at all. Now Potter was even the Head of two Noble and Most Ancient Houses! Even _he_ knew what that meant, despite not often being in the pureblood circle (mainly because most purebloods were dark). It meant that Potter had even more money and power.

Even if he were to become the Head of the Weasley Family, which was very unlikely seeing that he was sixth child, he would only be the Head of a Noble House. It wasn't fair! How come he got everything? It just wasn't fair!

Ron kicked his bed angrily; and pain shot up his leg. Clutching his foot, he sat down on the bed, cursing. Stupid Potter for getting everything. Stupid parents for not having anything but a lot of kids. Stupid brothers for being older than him. Stupid Black-

"_Sirius!"_

Harry's frantic cry cut through his thoughts like a hot knife through butter.

Irritated, Ron hit himself in the thigh. How could he? How could he have such thoughts about his best mate? This is like a repeat of their fourth year. Hadn't he thought that Harry had everything and he had nothing? Hadn't he realized the dangers Harry, unwillingly, had to go through? And the only reason why Harry was the Head of two houses was that both his parents and Sirius were dead.

He had no wish for his parents' death for the family fortune (or what was left of it anyways). Didn't he remember how his father almost died the year before? If it wasn't for Harry, he would've lost his father to Vol- You-Know-Who's snake. And it was the same visions that saved his father that eventually led to Sirius's death. How could he be jealous of Harry over his inheritance? Harry was Sirius's beloved godson; _of course_, he would receive more. And at least, _Malfoy_ wasn't the Head of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black. He wouldn't hear the end of it if it were to happen — Malfoy was already arrogant enough with being just the Malfoy heir; there was no need for more.

He also knew that Harry was the type to show off. Bloody hell! He _knew_ that! And yet... and yet he had all those horrible thoughts about his best mate.

With his head in his hands, Ron groaned. He was an idiot. He was _such_ an idiot.

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**What do you think of my**** fourth ****chapter? Please Read and Review. I would love to know how good and how bad my fics are. If you want to flame me, at least make it constructive criticism.**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize f****ro****m the Harry Potter Series aren't mines, they are J.K. Rowling's. Anything else is mine. **Please ask for permission and getting it before taking my things.

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXX**_

_May fantasy guide your writing through it all - Dementra_


	5. The Imperceptible

_**The Forces of Nature**_

**Hi! Thanks for wanting to read this fanfic. I hope you like this story.**

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXX**_

**Chapter 5 The Imperceptible**

In a world of whiteness, a black owl came swooping in from above, tendrils of inky blackness trailing from its wings. The owl vanished from sight when the entire white-washed world was dyed into darkness. But it did not stay that way for long. A ball of fire emerged from the darkness, forming the shape a fox. It sat on its hind legs and tilted its snout upwards. From its opened mouth, it spewed out a burst of flames, which eventually stopped at one point and formed a ball.

Then a small transparent blue butterfly flew into the scene. Silver glitters, like pollen, floated down from its wings with every flap. Slowly, but sure, the darkness disappeared, replaced by a clear blue sky. The butterfly then settled itself on the tip of the snoozing fox's ear, not at all affected by the flames that made up its companion.

From below, ripples emerged and a blue dolphin leaped out it. As it leaped back into the fading ripples, water flooded the scene. Undeterred, the fox continued on napping. The dolphin leaped out again, this time splashing water up into the air; the butterfly leisurely flew around the droplets once. Whiteness entered the droplets as they grew bigger and fluffier, unlike they floated up to the fireball in the sky and become clouds.

A brown bear walked in; and with every step, earth and rocks were left behind. The bear's path spiralled outwards; by the time it stopped, a circular island was created. A series of clicking and thrilling sounds escaped from the dolphin's mouth. The clouds darkened and gathered over the island. Static built up and sparks of electricity can be seen amongst the clouds. Looking up at the sky, the fox whined and then darted to the bear, looking for protection. The butterfly had also followed, seeking refugee under the bear's thick fur.

Before long, a blot of lightning struck down onto the barren land, leaving behind a yellow snake, which had electricity sparking from its scales from time to time. A few seconds later, thunder clapped. As if on cue, rain poured down in buckets. Grass rapidly grew from the soil, followed by other plants. In the middle of the island, a sprout grew and grew until it became a grand tree with a large crown of healthy green leaves. The rain lessened; the clouds lost their greyness and broke apart into smaller pieces.

As the clouds gradually parted, the owl from earlier swooped in from the left, once again trailing darkness wherever it went. However, instead of flying away, it settled for a branch on the tree, leaving half of the sky still embraced by the light. The leaves on the left side of the tree, where the owl landed, instantly withered and fell to the ground; even the branches blackened. However, the right side of the tree remained completely unaffected.

The snake, which had latched on to a branch on the right side of the tree as it grew, spew out blots of lightning into the blackened sky. Where the lightning touched, stars emerged. Soon, the left side of the sky was filled with twinkling stars; and the snake slithered away, hidden by the leaves.

From the waters, the reflection of the sun lightened until it became pale silver and moved towards the left side of the ocean. The dolphin leaped upwards again, this time with the changed reflection on its head. When it returned to the water, the reflection did not follow and stayed as the moon instead.

The fox got up from where is laid by the bear, strolled over to the base of the tree, and sat down. As soon as the truck touched the canine, it burst into flames. The flames grew and grew until they consumed the scene whole.

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**What do you think of my**** fifth ****chapter? Please Read and Review. I would love to know how good and how bad my fics are. If you want to flame me, at least make it constructive criticism.**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize f****ro****m the Harry Potter Series aren't mines, they are J.K. Rowling's. Anything else is mine. **Please ask for permission and getting it before taking my things.

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXX**_

_May fantasy guide your writing through it all - Dementra_


	6. The Return to Hogwarts

_**The Forces of Nature**_

**Hi! Thanks for wanting to read this fanfic. I hope you like this story.**

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXX**_

**Chapter 6 The Return to Hogwarts**

With his head propped up by his arm, Harry sighed as he stared out the window, watching the scenery speed by. It had been almost two months since his grand escape from the Dursleys and gained his rightful inheritance. Now it was time to return to Hogwarts. He sighed again. Though he really could've done without it. Now he'd have to face them practically 24/7.

Ever since he had escaped from the Order's clutches, he had not contacted any of them. He knew that once he entered Hogwarts grounds, they would come upon him like vultures. He could only hope that the skills he had gained over the summer would be able to aid him. In fact, some of the spells he had practiced were chosen solely for their usefulness in helping with this little problem.

The door to the compartment slammed open, startling him out of his thoughts. He groaned. Just one of the person he _didn't_ want to see right now. He really should've warded the door earlier.

"Oh, _there_ you are Harry!" Hermione exclaimed, closing the compartment door behind her. "I've been looking for you for ages! Why haven't you contacted us? Do you know how worried everyone's been?"

Thinking that she was talking about reporting his whereabouts to the Order, Harry frowned, "Hermione, I-"

"Don't "Hermione" me!" she cut in, a hand on her hips. "You didn't have to tell us where you were, but _at least_ owl us from time to time. Every owl I've sent returned with the letter unopened. I was so worried that something might've happened to you!"

"I'm sorry," he said quietly, slightly ashamed of his past actions of completely ignoring his friends. "I actually haven't gotten any owls form you guys," Harry explained, hoping to pacify the girl. "The place I'm staying at is warded against owls which haven't been keyed into the wards. You have to owl me using a specific owl mail box."

Hermione, however, was not so easily appeased. "You still should've told us your mailing address," she huffed, taking a seat across from him.

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Sorry, Mione. I'll tell you later," he promised.

"You'd better," she said in mock anger, as she took out a book and started to read.

Harry smiled. Just like always, only... someone was missing.

"Mione, where's Ron?"

—

Harry glanced at the redhead sitting across from them. Ron took that seat after Harry and Hermione took theirs, so at least, he wasn't that irritated with them. Two years ago, when Ron thought Harry had put his name into the Goblet of Fire for more fame, he had sat noticeably away from him. But now, they were close, just not _that _close; they still had the table acting as the physical barrier between them, as well as the other invisible and intangible barrier.

A physical barrier can be easily dealt with if needed to be, but a psychological and emotional one couldn't be. In the years Harry had known the redhead, he knew that Ron can let his emotions (usually the darker ones) get a hold of him quite quickly, mostly because of the inferiority complex he had gained from being the youngest of the six sons, who all happened to be brilliant in some ways. And it would either take a while or a huge event (like fighting dragons) to make him get over it.

Harry sighed. Sometimes he wondered if it was worth the effort he made to keep Ron as his friend. But, other times, especially the life threatening ones, he was more than delighted that Ron was there by his side as the strategist. Merlin knew how they could've died all those adventures in the past five years if it wasn't for Ron'.

Taking his attention away from his hot-headed friend, he glanced around the hall, or to be specific the other side of the Great Hall. Judging by the Slytherins' calculating looks aimed at his person, they also knew of his new title as the head of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black. Not that it was a surprise. The Malfoys, especially the Malfoy heir, must've ranted about Harry 'stealing' his position in the Black family. Or perhaps, the Lestrange told Voldemort and his cronies about it. After all, being a former member of the Black family, Bellatrix must've received a letter regarding her disownment from the Noble and Ancient House of Black.

Just then, the Sorting Hat opened its mouth and began to sing.

_Once a upon a time,  
When the morning bells began to chime,  
Gathered were four friends,  
Each wanting amends.  
Slytherin, the one known for being canny,  
Said, magic has chosen a many.  
Nodding, the sensible Ravenclaw,  
Commented, normal ones thinks it's a flaw.  
Sadden, Hufflepuff, the ever faithful one,  
Said, fear causes bloodshed for many years come.  
Let's build a school!  
Gryffindor said, the one named the courageous fool.  
And build a school they did.  
Finding the magic hid,  
They gathered students, young and old,  
Into their little fold.  
Many years past,  
Began to fade, their magic cast  
Spats erupted  
Peace disrupted  
Lie is the truth, truth is the lie  
Causing rumours to fly  
To this very day  
This twisted game is still in play  
Gryffindor the good, Slytherin the evil,  
But which is the true devil?  
Hufflepuff the loyal, Ravenclaw the wise,  
Just who is in disguise?  
Masked death under forked tongue.  
Fire birds under old one.  
Elements have their chosen  
Other forces have awoken  
Whether desired or not,  
In this years long war fought,  
You, my dear students, are a part,  
Choose where it leads you, your heart._

Silence reigned the Great Hall.

No one knew what to make of it.

However, not minutes later, whispers filled the air (the Ravenclaw table being the noisiest). What's the Sorting Hat talking about? Was it saying that Godric Gryffindor was the devil? Was it saying the Salazar Slytherin was good? Was it saying that Voldemort's side was the right one? Was it saying that either Helga Hufflepuff or Rowena Ravenclaw was actually evil in disguise? What's the truth and what's the lie? Was history wrong all along? What's masked death? What forked tongue? What fire birds? Which old one? And what's that talk about elements? What does that refer to? What chosen? Who are they? Which side are they on? You-Know-Who's or the Light's? What's going on?

"_Silence_!" Dumbledore, wearing his neon purple robes, exclaimed as he stood up. And silence was what he got. "The sorting has yet begun. Let's save the talking for later, during the feast."

He sat back down as Professor Minerva McGonagall stepped forward, with a scroll in hand. As she read the names from the scroll, the first years, a little nervous, stepped up one by one to the stool to be sorted by the Sorting Hat.

When the first years were all sorted and seated, Dumbledore, once again, rose up from his seat. "Welcome to a new year in Hogwarts. For some of you, it's the start of a new lifestyle. But don't you fret. Your upperclassmen and your teachers will help you along. Others, it's a year of stress and exams, but don't you forget the fun in life. Just take some time off your studies and relax once in a while. And I'm sure that many of you have noticed the empty seat where our Defence Against the Dark Arts professor sits. Worry not, we do have a DADA professor. In fact, you are in for a treat this year."

He paused for a few seconds, carrying one the suspense. "This year, with the permission of the Ministry of Magic and the schools affected, Element Magic shall be taught this year. Element Magic is a branch of magic more commonly seen with magical creatures than wizards, and hence, it's not normally taught at school and many wizards never realize that they could wield such magic. However, there is a school where it's taught, and that's Nightshade Academy of Magic. The Academy has graciously sent a professor and some students here to teach you about Element Magic, and for those who have the ability, how to wield it. Do you remember that I said Element Magic is a branch of magic more commonly seen with magical creatures than wizards? Well, there's a reason why that school teaches it. Most of the students and staff at Nightshade Academy of Magic have magical creature blood."

Whispers filled the hall with the revelation.

"SILENCE!"

No one dared to make a peep; everyone stared at the normally kind-hearted and easy-going professor.

Dumbledore looked at them sternly. "Discrimination against them will _not_ be tolerated. If you make _any_ discriminating comments, gestures, or acts towards them, they can, and will, reiterate — using methods within limits, of course. They, both the professor and students, have been given permission to do so by the Ministry of Magic and the Board of Governor. As I've said before, it's a Ministry of Magic approved program, so any complaints should go to them. On a happier note," twinkles returned to his eyes, "please welcome Nightshade Academy of Magic!"

The door to the Great Hall slammed opened and everyone's head instantly turned towards it, eagerly awaiting their appearance. Much to their surprise, instead of the view they were used to seeing when the doors are opened, it was pitch black, with tendrils of shadowy mist seeping through.

Suddenly, two balls of fire, one blue and one orange, shot out from the inky blackness, causing quite a few students to scream. The two of them spiralled in the air until they met at a certain point a few meters before the staff table and formed a dual-coloured two-tailed cat. It flew until it was right before the staff table; and the flames receded, leaving a teen behind, who was kneeling with his head down, facing the professors.

Ribbons of water then burst out from the doorway. Forming the shapes of different sea creatures, they swam around the students, earning squeals of delight from the younger teens. The water pooled together by the fire wielder's side. From the puddle, a female figure emerged, in the same kneeling position as the other teen.

A gust of wind came blowing from the entrance, making everyone to turn around and face it again. It was followed by many different coloured leaves. They danced around the room, heading towards the staff table, where they then separated into two groups and swirled on either side of the two kneeling teens. When the leaves finally disappeared, they revealed two people, also in the same kneeling position.

A chill encased the room soon after; and a blizzard blew into the Great Hall through the blackened doorway, following by a herd of animated ice unicorns. Starting from the end of the herd, the unicorns dematerialised into glittering white snowflakes that eventually also disappeared into thin air. The unicorn at the head of the herd only vanished when it arrived next to one of the teens who came out from the swirling leaves. In its place was another kneeling girl.

The grounds suddenly rumbled, causing many students to yell in fright. When it stopped a few second later, everyone, except for the Nightshade students, was glancing around apprehensively. Just like the fireballs from earlier, rocks shot out from the darkness and piled up next to the other student who came out from the swirling leaves. The rocks crumbled and fell apart, leaving behind a male who was on his knees like the rest of them.

The sound of thunder came along with the rapidly propagating grey clouds, all of which had sparks of electricity flowing through. Blots of lightning rained down, sticking the areas between the tables, terrifying many students; it even had the professors standing up, wands raised defensively. The final two lightning struck either ends of the line of Nightshade students, and two other kneeling teens were left in their place.

An ominous feeling descended amongst them, not unlike that of a Demontor. Everyone looked towards the darkened entrance uneasily. The tendrils of shadow that was held at bay before spread across the Great Hall, leaving no wall, no floor untouched. Screams were heard from the students; some had even started to cry. A few seconds after the blackout, the darkness receded to a single spot behind the kneeling teens. It grew until it was in the shape of a standing person. The shadow disappeared back to the ground, leaving behind a smirking woman, who was facing the students unlike the other members of Nightshade Academy of Magic.

She was beautiful, in a dark seductress kind of way. Her straight black hair that reached just below her chest, her long dark purple dress — consisting of long spider-net sleeves, a deep V-neck, and a silt her right side from her hips down — her black choker with a dangling red crystal, and sharp black nails only served to emphasize her pale skin. Aside from her skin and that choker, the only things that weren't in the darker side of the colour spectrum were her bright blue eyes and her blood red lips.

"Greetings, students and staff of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," she said, almost in a purr. "We are from Nightshade Academy of Magic. As your Headmaster had said, each one of us has the authority to punish you in the way we deem fit should you disrespect our heritage in any ways. Bear in mind that we would not harm you unless you make the first move. I am Anathema Ater, a proud pureblooded vampire who wields the element of darkness." She grinned, showing her sharp canines. "I am also your Defence Against the Dark Arts and Element Magic professor of the year. If you misbehave, I can, and _will_, ban you from attending my Element Magic course. Element Magic will only be taught to those who can wield it and are in fifth year and above. However, _knowledge _on Element Magic will be taught to all years. A test would be given on the first day of your Defence Against the Dark Arts class to see if you have the potential to wield Element Magic. Now, let's get on with the rest of the introductions."

The one who came out from the fire stood up, turned around, and bowed. "My name is Natsume Honomaru, a pureblooded nekotama," he said with a slight Japanese accent, "and fire is my main element." The teen was wearing what seemed to be a burgundy haori and hakama and a pair of geta. He had black layered hair that framed his tanned face, bringing his handsome looks out. However, the things that caught their attention most were his dark red eyes, which reminded some of the Dark Lord's eyes.

Next was the girl who emerged from water. She was also very beautiful, a pale beauty, but unlike her professor, she gave off an ethereal atmosphere instead. Her every action was done with the grace of a ballet dancer. She curtsied. "Kamaria Moonwalker is my name. I am a pureblooded elf who wields the element of water." The elf had wavy dark blonde locks which reached the dark green sash she had around her waist. She was wearing a silky light green dress, which brought out her leaf green eyes, with flower designs embroidered in it in white thread, and white cloth boots.

The teen kneeling beside Natsume stood up and turned around. Like the leaves he materialized from, he had dark wavy green hair, akin to that of seaweed, and amber eyes. He seemed rather bony though, almost like a tree trunk and its branches; in fact, he had a brownish tint to his olive-coloured skin. "I am Alexander Oak, an oak dryad. And naturally, I have power over plants." The dryad was indeed wearing a brownish robe which seemed to have been made of leaves.

Then it was the girl kneeling beside Kamaria's turn. Compared to the Nightshade students they have been introduced to so far, she looked normal, muggle normal — chest-length wavy brown hair with pink ribbons threaded through it, blue eyes, a light green blouse, blue denim shorts and a pair of lavender flip flops. "Hi! I'm Melanie Rosen, but everyone calls me Mel!" she said cheerfully. "I can wield the element of air. Oh, and I'm a half fairy. See?" Sparkles simmered behind her and a pair of translucent butterfly wings appeared on her back.

"My name is Koori Fuyumura," the pale-skinned girl beside Alexander announced, with the sleeve of her light blue kimono embroidered with snowflakes partially covering her mouth. She had straight navy blue hair that reached the small of her back and silver bangs. Golden eyes scanned the room and she smirked. "I'm half yuki-onna. If that doesn't tell you which element I wield, you're a complete idiot."

Next was the boy who came out of the pile of rocks. He was an albino with thick fluffy hair and lavender eyes; however, he did not seem to be a stereotypical albino because his skin was somewhat tanned, much like Natsume. His paleness was enhanced because of the black uniform, a slightly downgraded version of a military uniform, he was wearing. "My name is Erebus Hunter." His voice was kind of rough. "I am a half-lycan, as you can see by the ears." Everyone's attention shifted to his head; sure enough, there were two twitching furry appendences on top of it. "And I can control earth and its metallic minerals."

Contrasting the cold colours Koori sported, the girl next to her was embraced in warmer colours — a short light pink dress with a white sash and red low-heel shoes. With her chin-length orange hair and her equally bright eyes, she almost seemed to be the epitome of either the sunset or sunrise. "I am Nila of the Dreiana Clan. One of my grandparents is a pureblooded veela who married a human and had a child who also married a human and eventually had me. Lightning is the element I specialize in."

Finally, the last of the group stood up and turned around. He was as ethereally beautiful as Kamaria but in a masculine way. His skin was pale, but his hair and eyes were not — they were a flaming red and a bright violet respectively. The clothes he was wearing seemed to be made from the same silky material as the ones the pureblooded elf was wearing, except they were a light purple tunic and pants, a dark purple sash and shoes. "My name is Cain Scarlet and I'm a half-blood elf, second cousin to Kamaria actually. Unlike her, I wield the element of light."

Professor Dumbledore stood up. "Let's give a round of applause to welcome Professor Aster, Mr. Honomaru, Miss. Moonwalker, Mr. Oak, Miss. Rosen, Miss. Fuyumura, Mr. Hunter, Miss. Dreiana, and Mr. Scarlet!"

Everyone clapped their hands, even the Slytherins who were doing that half-heartedly.

"Please take a seat at any of the tables and let the feast begin!"

All eyes were on the Nightshade students, wondering where their preference laid. The eight of them separated into pairs, calmly walked over to the front of their chosen tables and sat down — Cain and Nila had chosen Gryffindor, Alexander and Melanie were at the Hufflepuff table, Ravenclaw appealed to Kamaria and Koori, and Natusme and Erebus took their seats at the Slytherin table. Instantly, they were crowded by the Hogwarts students.

From her spot at the staff table, Professor Aster scanned the hall. "This House system of yours divides the students," she commented. "Nightshade does not have that. We are one under Nightshade."

"Is that so?" Professor Snape drawled.

The vampire nodded. "Yes, in times of war, unity is of uttermost importance."

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**What do you think of my**** sixth ****chapter? Please Read and Review. I would love to know how good and how bad my fics are. If you want to flame me, at least make it constructive criticism.**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize f****ro****m the Harry Potter Series aren't mines, they are J.K. Rowling's. Anything else is mine. **Please ask for permission and getting it before taking my things.

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_May fantasy guide your writing through it all - Dementra_


	7. The Nature of Magic

_**The Forces of Nature**_

**Hi! Thanks for wanting to read this fanfic. I hope you like this story.**

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**Chapter 7 ****The Nature of Magic**

For the past few days, just like two years ago, there were many rumours and conversations about their new DADA professor and her lessons. According to the grapevine, Element magic was taught by not one, but nine, people; basically, the eight Nightshade students were at Hogwarts as teachers, not as students. However, it was also said that Professor Aster and Professor Snape had something going on behind the scenes; the ongoing rumours of the Head of Slytherin having vampire blood only further contributed to that. Sure Snape and Aster were seen conversing civilly during the meals once in a while (a shocker for those who knew the greasy Potions master), but it doesn't mean anything. Right?

He just can't imagine Snape going all lovey dovey over someone. Much less snog them or go to bed with them.

Okay, that was a disturbing image.

Anyhow, Harry was definitely looking forward to his first DADA class of the year. He can't wait to see whether or not he could wield Element Magic. If he had a choice, he would love to have power over fire. But really, who wouldn't? It's practically the strongest element. It'd be so cool to be able to control it.

He could just picture now — dragons and other creatures made of fire chasing the Death Eaters and Voldemort around who were screaming for their mommy, and he would be standing there, laughing at the scene.

"As you all know, I'm Professor Aster, your new DADA professor as well as your professor for Element Magic. However, you may address me as Anathema or Aster. I care not for the title of being a professor. And these," the vampire gestured towards the eight Nightshade students standing behind her, "are my teaching assistants. But, before I start the lesson, I'm going to lay down a few ground rules." She looked at them sternly. "First of all, I could care less whether or not you attend class or do your assignments. I'm not going to baby you. You're all old enough to know what you should do. If you fail the course, then you fail. You won't be getting any second chances from me. That also goes for assignments, quizzes, tests and exams. If you miss class, I'm not going to go over the things I've taught again. It's your responsibility to catch up with my lessons. If you don't hand in your assignments on time, you're getting a zero. There are some exemptions of course, such as being in a coma. That also goes for quizzes, tests and exams. If you don't show up, you're getting a zero.

"Secondly, for those who do attend class, I expect uttermost respect from you. You are not to fool around in class. You are not to disobey my rules. You are not to disobey any of my teaching assistants. You are to listen to whatever we say. Serious injuries, and even death, can occur in this class. It has happened before. And I will not be held responsible for that. In fact, there's a parchment placed on each of your desk. It states that you are fully aware of my rules and that if it is proven that your death or injury or someone else's death or injury is the result of your disregard for my rules, you are held responsible for your actions. None of you are allowed to learn how to wield element magic unless you sign the form. If you're not willing to obey my rules, you might as well not attend class. As I've said before, I could care less about that.

"Thirdly, if you disobey me or my teaching assistants, I am eligible to kick you out of class. In the more serious cases, I am eligible to utterly refuse to teach you element magic and make sure that you would not try to learn it on your own. This was part of the agreement between Nightshade Academy of Magic and the Ministry of Magic. You can take it up to them if you're dissatisfied with the rules.

"Last of all, element magic is not like the magic you have been wielding so far. It can go out of control. Unless I give you permission, you are not allowed to use Element Magic outside of class. And even so, you are only allowed to use Element Magic within limits. Offenders will be kicked out of class, permanently."

Anathema gestured over to them. "Now read and sign the contract using your full name. We'll begin class shortly afterwards. Be aware that should you attempt to sign it using a false name or a shortened name, you will not be attending my Defence Against the Dark Arts and Element Magic classes. After you're done, put it in a pile on my desk."

Like everyone else in the class, Harry picked up the parchment and started to read it. It basically stated the same things the professor had said but in a more formal manner and in more details. Without a pause, he picked up his quill, signed the parchment where indicated, and handed over to the professor.

When everyone was done, Anathema placed her hand on the pile and mumbled a few words. To his surprise, his body suddenly gave off a white glow; in fact, every one of them was glowing. The professor lifted up her hand and the light show disappeared.

"Now that you've all signed it, we can start the lesson." The vampire glanced around at the room, staring at them with piercing eyes as if she can see into their souls. Harry gulped and turned his gaze away from her when her eyes landed on his. "I don't know what your previous professors have taught you, but forget all the theories and concepts they have taught. They have no place in my lessons. They may be magic-users, but they are still humans. Humans don't have as strong connection to magic as we do. Magic is magic. There is no good or evil. There is only power and intent."

Harry was suddenly reminded of Voldemort.

"Magic can be labelled as dark and light, but that doesn't mean it's either good or evil. Dark magic can be used for evil and it can be used for good, so can light magic. For example... The Levitation Charm can be used to lift up a boulder and drop it on someone. The Incendius Spell can set people on fire, burning them to death. The Reductor Curse can be used to blow up someone's head. The Severing Charm can cut off someone's head. It can even be used in torturing. You can cut off a person's fingers and toes one by one."

Some of the students' face were starting to pale, but she paid them no head. "These are all considered as light magic. The Killing Curse can be used as an act of mercy killing for someone who's suffering immense and incurable pain. It's a painless death after all. The Imperius Curse can be used to save someone who is intending to commit suicide. The Cruciatus Curse can be used to upstart paralyzed nerves if done properly. The Fiendfyre Curse can be used to protect you from some dangerous creatures like a basilisk. As you can see, good and evil is all about intent, not about magic itself. But why are they labelled as light and dark magic? Does anyone here know?"

For once, in a classroom that included one Hermione Granger, no one raised their hands.

"The difference between light and dark magic is what they cost," Anathema said a few seconds later. "To use light magic, all you need to give up is your energy. But dark magic costs much more than that. Depending on the magic used, it can cost you your blood, your flesh, your mind, or even your soul. I'll repeat it once more. There is no good and evil in magic, only power, intent, and what it costs to use that magic. Do you understand me?"

They all nodded in silence, too stunned, too occupied in their thoughts to say a word.

Someone snickered, and all eyes landed on the culprit — Nila Dreiana, the quarter veela.

"It's probably too much information for their puny little human brains, Anat" she sniggered.

The vampire raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Says with quite a bit of human blood running through her veins. What does that say about your ancestors?"

Nila cross her arms and huffed. "There are always exemptions, Anat, you know that. My grandparents and my parents are the smart ones out of the bunch, and I had inherited that."

"I wonder about that," Natsume Honomaru, the nekotama, snorted.

"Hey! What did you mean by that?"

"Let's ignore the children over there," Anathema cut in, ignoring the "Hey!" from said children. "Now we'll start with the topic you've all been waiting for — element magic."

Everyone instantly perked up.

"All of you know about dark and light magic, but I'm willing to bet that none of you have heard of natural magic."

Harry spared a glance at Hermione, and true to the professor's words, seemed to be sporting a puzzled look on her face.

"Natural magic is basically magic, energy, in its rawest form — no spells, no incantations, no rituals, no focus, no intent, no stirring things in a cauldron. Natural magic is everywhere, in the air you breathe, in the blood that flows through your veins, in the core of the Earth. It's everywhere. And element magic is the closest thing to natural magic that any living creature can wield.

"It was said that our, meaning us and not you humans, ancient ancestors were born from the elements, and hence can grasp element magic quite easily. The original humans, on the other hand, were said to be born from a mixture of the galaxy's dust and minerals. Some had more natural magic in their being than others; and those original humans eventually led to the birth of wizards and witches. However, as all humans were created with the help of magic, the humans known as muggles can occasionally give birth to future wizarding folks. Wizards and witches have the potential to wield element magic, but it comes harder for them."

Hermione raised up her hand.

"Yes, Miss. Granger?"

The muggleborn witch blurted out, "How would you know if that's true? It's not as if people knew how to communicate through writing back then?" Most of the class, especially the pureblood Slytherins, nodded in agreement. Was the vampire trying to say that magical creatures were more superior to them?

Anathema met their stares calmly. "That is what has been passed down to us. Whether you believe it or not is irrelevant. The truth remains that there are muggleborns, and wizarding folks are less capable than us, whom you dub as magical creatures, in terms of wielding element magic and understanding magic."

Without raising her hand, Hermione asked, "I noticed that you never call yourselves "magical creatures", then what _do_ you call yourselves?"

"Magical creatures should be a term reserved for all whom can wield magic. By calling us "creatures" and yourselves "humans", it implies that you think yourselves as much more superior when in fact we have more access to magic than any of you can. There are other terms, but the most popular term we use to describe ourselves is "apparition"; after all, it had long been passed down that we originated from the elements themselves. Any other questions?" No one replied. "I thought so. There are six main types of elements — fire, water, earth, air, light, and darkness. We'll give you a brief overview of each one before we start the testing."

Natsume stepped up from the group, with a fireball hovering over his palm. "I have the power over fire, in all its form." The fireball then changed from red to yellow to blue to orange to purple to white and then back to red. "The colour of the flame changes depending on the heat. Some people can only produce flames of a certain heat while others can change its temperature. Of course, the least compatible ones would only be able to produce heat at most. But I doubt any of you humans would be able to do that if you aren't compatible with fire."

"Just ignore Natsu's rudeness," Kamaria Moonwalker said when it was her turn to step up. "He's not really fond of humans."

"Neither am I for that matter," Koori Fuyumura, the yuki-onna, huffed from her spot beside the elf.

Kamaria chided, "Koori, they're not supposed to be discriminating against us, so neither should we to them. Leave those thoughts in your mind and not out your mouth." Giving her attention back to the class, she smiled, making quite a few males sigh with pleasure. "I'll be giving you a debriefing on the element of water today. As you all should know, water generally comes in three forms — liquid, ice, and water vapour. I can use all three forms of water, but my expertise lies in the liquid form of water." A ball of swirling water formed above her opened hand. The ball slowly froze and turned into a solid block of ice. Then it gradually evaporated, vanishing as steam.

Ice suddenly covered the entirety of the yuki-onna's arm. "I can only use ice, but I won't lose to that princess in a duel just because of this. I can wield ice much better than the princess can. Ice, at its lowest temperatures, can turn steam to ice and instantly freeze people death."

A whip of water met her ice-covered arm and steam appeared with a hiss. Everyone turned to look at the originator — the elf. Kamaria smiled, "But water at really high temperatures can also turn ice to steam with a single touch. In addition, unlike ice, water has more variability." The whip, which was encircling Koori, changed into a bird, which was then turned into ice by the yuki-onna. Koori sent the bird back to the elf who just transformed it into steam. "And water vapour has many uses as well. But I'll elaborate on it some other time."

This time, three people stepped up to the front — Alexander Oak, Erebus Hunter, and Melanie Rosen. "The element with the most subcategories is the element of earth," green-haired male said. "Being an oak dryad, it is obvious that I have connection to plants, especially oak trees; and plants are exactly what I wield." He held up a seed and placed it onto the teacher's desk. Before their very eyes, the seed sprouted and grew into a small bush within seconds.

"I don't have as much compatibility with the element of earth," Melanie cut in. "All I can do is influence the growth of flowers." She touched the bush and several red rose bloomed. "I can't make them bloom unless the plant has already grown enough to have flowers."

Alexander plucked one of the roses from the bush and held it in front of Hermione with a flourish bow. "Milady, the petals of this flower are soft, but they pale in comparison with your long silken hair. Nevertheless, would you allow me the honour of having you accept this rose?"

Pink swept across her cheeks. Hermione nodded shyly and gingerly took the thorn-less rose from the dryad, murmuring, "Thank you." All the while, the pair ignored the angry and jealous stares the other girls shot at the muggleborn and the murderous glare Ron gave Alexander. Harry chuckled to himself.

"Keep those things outside of class, Oak," Erebus said in distain. "We have no desire to witness your terrible flirting skills."

The green-haired male huffed, "As if you can do any better Mr. I-Have-An-Ice-Pole-Shoved-Up-My-Ass."

"Language, Alexander Oak," Anathema chided. "Keep your petty arguments out of class. And, Alexander, Erebus is correct. Please refrain from flirting in during class time."

"Yes, my dear Anat," Alexander purred.

The vampire raised an eyebrow, not amused. "Do you wish for a detention with me so early in the year?"

He shuddered. "No thanks. I'll be good," he replied, making the class curious, and wary, about her detentions.

"Erebus."

The half lycan nodded, and then turned to look at the class. "Unlike those two dunderheads..."

"Hey!"

"I can wield earth, as in soil and rocks, and metallic minerals." Erebus lifted up a hand; and the galleon on the teacher's desk rose before him. It then shifted from a coin to a ball to a spiked sphere to a wolf and back into a galleon. "Of course, there are other types of minerals as well. However, none of us have the ability to wield them. The ones who have are in the other groups."

"Putting the boring earth things aside, let's talk about the element of air!" Melanie beamed, her translucent wings flapping behind her. "I can make flowers grow, but my main element is air." A breeze swept through the classroom. "Nila can wield air too, but not as well as I can!" The quarter vela huffed and turned away, saying nothing. "Air is so much fun!" The half-fairy adopted a dreamy look. "It feels great when the wind plays with your hair and wings as you fly through the air... Hearing the voices of the world whispering in your ear...The coolness that washes over you under the sun... A bliss..." she sighed wistfully.

"Ignore the airhead," Nila Dreiana interrupted, roughly pushing the half-fairy aside. "The element of air has _nothing_ on lightning." Electricity danced among her fingers, lighting up her feral grin.

"I still say that fire is better," Natsume commented. His hand was also cackling with electricity. "Lightning does not have the same warmth and power that fire has."

"Lightning can kill faster than fire can ever hope to!"

"It takes time to charge up electricity. Fire is different."

"Only because you're inept at using the best element out of the six."

Cain Scarlet cut it, "Lightning is a subcategory of the element of light, and so, technically, it isn't an actual element, Nila." He looked at the enraptured class. "My main element is light." His entire body was covered by a white glow for a few seconds. "It might seem to be the weakest of all the elements, but it's actually not. Light is a powerful element, if you know how to use it properly."

Anathema stepped up again, just as the Nightshade students went back to their original position. "And the last element of the six is the element of darkness. Darkness can mean a lot of things — the lack of light, shadows, invisibility. Just like magic, the elements of light and darkness do not indicate good and evil. Also, each element has its own strengths and weaknesses. If any of you dare to criticize your schoolmates about their element or use your element against others unless given permission, you may be kicked out of my Element Magic class _permanently_. Understood?"

They nodded.

"Good. Now that you've gotten a brief summary on the elements, let's get on with the testing. I want you to come up here one by one starting from the left side of the first row. After you finish the test, I want you to write your name and your result on the parchment on my desk. Include the level of the intensity of colour as well from a scale of one to ten. Examples of the intensity has already been included on the parchment so you know what the numbers indicate."

There were six smooth stones on her desk, and all were a translucent colour. However, when a student hover their hand over each individual stone, sometimes it would change colour and it often differed in intensity depending on the person. For instance, when Hermione tried it, the only stone that glowed was the green one, and it was a bright clear green, a colour far more intense than anyone else who had gotten the green one to glow. Malfoy was like that too, except his was yellow. When it was Harry's turn, he had gotten a very bright blue, like that of a clear ocean. It was of a level 10 intensity, He wasn't one of the people which had gotten multiple stones to glow, but at least, he wasn't one of those who hadn't been able to get any to change colours. Ron was one of the lucky ones. His stones weren't that intense in colour, though. He had gotten a reddish-pinkish one, a level 7, and a rather faded lavender one, a level 3.

When everyone was done, Anathema stepped up, "Do you remember what you've gotten?" The class nodded. "Good. Now I'll tell you your results. Red indicates the element of fire. Blue indicates the element of water. Yellow indicates the element of light. Green indicates the element of earth. White indicates the element of air. And purple indicates the element of darkness. For those who didn't get any glow, you don't have any potential to wield element magic. Some of you may have potential for more than one element; others may only have one or none. If you do have the potential to wield more than one element, there is always one element that you wield better out of the group; that is your main element. If yours is a level one, it means that you currently have some potential but not a lot. On the other end of the spectrum, if yours glowed very intensely, it indicates that you have a very strong compatibility with that element."

She scanned the room, seeing different levels of disappointment and glee on her students. "However, just because you have a level one potential, it does not mean that you cannot do what someone with a level ten potential can do. It just means that you would have a harder time mastering it. I have seen people who started off with a level one potential completely wiping the floor with the people who started with a level ten potential. And as for those who do not have any potential for wielding element magic, it does not mean that you cannot use them completely. From what I can remember, you wizards have spells which enable you to conjure many of the elements."

Anathema then held out a few pieces of parchment. "I will have these posted outside my office. If you are interested in learning Element Magic, sign your _full_name under the element you have the potential to wield. This course is _not_ mandatory and will be held for three hours on both Saturday and Sunday. Some classes would be held in the morning, some in the afternoon, and some at night. If you sign up for it, you are expected to attend _every_ class. There _will_ be homework, tests, and exams, just like any other courses. For those who have the potential to wield multiple elements and wishes to learn about all of them, come and see me. We'll work something out. However, if you put your name under more than one Element Magic class without my permission and/or put your name under an Element you have no potential to wield, I have the right to kick you out.

"On a different note, if you choose to not take Element Magic, it is fine as well, but don't even _try_ to do Element Magic on your own." Her eyes darkened, and the shadows in the room seemed to grow and sway. "All of you have signed that contract at the beginning of class. Whether or not you take the Element Magic class, you are _not_ allowed to wield Element Magic without my permission. Of course, I would still go over Element Magic in Defence Against the Dark Arts, but it would not be as specific as the individual Element Magic classes. You all have two weeks to decide. Class dismissed."

The noise level rose as the crowd dispersed, talking excitedly about the new professor, her assistants, and Element Magic.

"I'm definitely going to sign up for the Element Magic class," Hermione announced matter-of-factly. Then she looked at the two boys walking beside her with narrowed eyes. "You two should sign up for it too. And I'll sign up for both the fire and darkness Element Magic classes if I were you, Ron. It's really not fair. I only have the potential to wield the element of earth. But then again, that's better than not being able to wield any at all. I'll be devastated if I couldn't. And luckily..."

Before Hermione could go on into another tirade, Harry cut in. "Yeah, I'm definitely signing up for Element Magic. How about you, Ron?"

He shrugged. "Oh, I don't know... The classes are on the weekends, right? Then wouldn't we have less free time, and we wouldn't be able to go to Hogsmade either."

Harry slowed blinked at the redhead. Ron was right. How could he have forgotten? They'll miss the Hogsmade trips if they signed up for Element Magic.

"Who'd care about the Hogsmade trips when we have this opportunity to learn Element Magic?" Hermione retorted. "Professor Aster and the Nightshade students are only here for this year. And there aren't a lot of witches or wizards who are qualified enough to teach Element Magic. If we miss this opportunity, we probably won't be able to learn Element Magic later."

The raven-head sighed as another argument erupted between his two friends. No one, save the first years, in the corridors even bothered to spare them a second glance. That was just how common this had become. Sad, really.

"We can always go to Hogsmade in our own time," Harry reminded them, making sure to keep his voice low.

"Exactly!" Hermione said. While she may not enjoy the thought of them sneaking out to Hogsmade _again_ and breaking the rules _again_, she would rather have them do that than to miss out on such a valuable opportunity. "See, even _Harry_ thinks that you should take up Element Magic classes instead!"

"Hey! I did not actually say that!"

"But it's _Hogsmade_."

"So? It's _Element __Magic_! Did you know-"

Harry shook his head ruefully and sighed again. He was not even going to try to get in-between that.

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**What do you think of my seventh chapter? Please Read and Review. I would love to know how good and how bad my fics are. If you want to flame me, at least make it constructive criticism.**

**Disclaimer:****Anything ****you ****recognize ****f****ro****m ****the ****Harry ****Potter ****Series ****aren****'****t ****mines, ****they ****are ****J. K. ****Rowling****'****s. ****Anything ****else ****is ****mines. **Please ask for permission and getting it before taking my things.

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_May fantasy guide your writing through it all - Dementr_


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